DGAP-News: schlott gruppe confirmes preliminary results for third quarter of 2009/10
(firmenpresse) - schlott gruppe Aktiengesellschaft / Quarter Results
04.08.2010 08:51
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schlott gruppe confirmes preliminary results for third quarter of 2009/10
- Market conditions remain challenging
- Cost base benefits from ongoing restructuring programme
- Performance at low end of expectations due to unfavourable market
development
Freudenstadt, 4 August 2010. schlott gruppe today confirmed its preliminary
results for the third quarter (April to June) of the 2009/10 financial
year, as published on 21 July 2010. The full financial report on the third
quarter and the first nine months of 2009/10 can be accessed from the
company website at www.schlottgruppe.de.
Despite a visible upturn in the general economy, the overall trend within
the printing industry has not yet shown any signs of improvement in the
third quarter. The sector as a whole continues to be dominated by sluggish
demand and downward pressure exerted on prices.
In the reporting quarter, schlott gruppe generated revenue of EUR66.7
million, down from EUR83.0 million in the same period a year ago; after the
first nine months of the 2009/10 financial year revenue stood at EUR231.5
million, compared with EUR278.6 million a year ago.
Value-added sales (VAS) for the third quarter receded by 16.8 per cent to
EUR37.2 million, after EUR44.7 million in the same period a year ago. The
year-on-year decline in revenue and VAS is to be seen against the backdrop
of a reduction by 20 per cent in gravure printing capacities during the
second quarter; additionally, this took full effect during the quarter
under review. Furthermore, the fall in VAS was attributable to
price-related factors and sluggish demand in the quarter under review.
The company succeeded in significantly reducing major expense items as part
of the restructuring programme currently being implemented at Group level.
Staff costs, for instance, were reined back by 18.6 per cent and other
operating expense by 15.4 per cent. Recording a slight fall in
depreciation/amortisation and write-downs, the Group was able to limit the
decline in EBIT before restructuring expense to EUR-3.4 million, compared
to EUR-2.5 million a year ago. After restructuring expense of EUR6.0
million, EBIT amounted to EUR-9.4 million, compared to EUR-3.9 million in
the third quarter of the previous financial year (including restructuring
expense of then EUR1.5 million). Net finance costs in the quarter under
review were down slightly to EUR-3.7 million from EUR-3.9 million a year
ago. Thus, the loss before taxes was EUR-13.1 million, compared to EUR-7.8
million a year ago. The consolidated loss after taxes was EUR-13.1 million,
after EUR-5.5 million for the same quarter a year ago.
In the first nine months, VAS contracted by 13.9 per cent to EUR124.9
million, down from a comparable EUR145.0 million for the first nine months
of 2008/9. EBIT before restructuring expense of EUR12.8 million stood at
EUR-6.5 million; including this expense item, it was EUR-19.3 million,
compared to EUR-3.3 million in the same period a year ago (this had
included EUR2.0 million in restructuring expenses). Net finance costs rose
significantly year on year from EUR-5.9 million to EUR-9.0 million in the
first nine months. EBT for the first nine months of 2009/10 thus amounted
to EUR-28.3 million, after EUR-9.2 million a year before.
The consolidated loss after taxes was EUR-26.9 million for the first nine
months, compared with EUR-6.4 million for the same period a year ago. The
loss per share eligible for dividends was EUR-1.86 in the third quarter,
compared with EUR-0.90 a year ago, and EUR-3.83 in the first nine months,
compared with EUR-1.05 last year.
The print segment generated VAS of EUR36.8 million in the third quarter,
after EUR44.2 million a year ago; segment EBT before restructuring expense
was EUR-5.4 million, compared to EUR-5.2 million a year ago; including this
expense item, segment EBT stood at EUR-8.7 million, after EUR-5.3 million
for the same period last year. For the first nine months, VAS amounted to
EUR123.6 million, down from EUR143.6 million a year ago. EBT before
restructuring expense was EUR-11.5 million, down from EUR-4.2 million;
including this expense item, EBT stood at EUR-16.8 million, compared with
EUR-4.8 million a year ago.
Largely induced by the executed capacity reduction aggregate tonnage fell
by 14.5 per cent to 105.0 thousand tonnes in the third quarter, down from
122.8 thousand tonnes in the same quarter a year ago. In the first nine
months of 2009/10 tonnage fell by 10.9 per cent year on year to EUR352.0
thousand tonnes, down from EUR395.0 thousand tonnes in the previous year.
Overall, the corporate services segment performed in line with
expectations. Excluding restructuring expense, EBT for the quarter under
review was EUR-1.7 million, compared to EUR-1.2 million; including this
expense item, it totalled EUR-4.3 million, down from EUR-2.6 million. For
the first nine months, EBT before restructuring expense stood at
EUR-3.9 million, compared with EUR-2.0 million for the same period a year
ago. Including this expense item, EBT was EUR-11.4 million, down from
EUR-3.5 million a year ago. A significant proportion of restructuring
expense was recorded in this business segment during the current financial
year, as these charges related to cross-segment functions.
The execution of schlott gruppe's restructuring measures remains on track.
Of the bottom-line effects identified for the 2009/10 financial year,
approx. 95 per cent were achieved in the first nine months. As regards
fiscal 2011/12, which is scheduled to be the final year of restructuring,
around two-third of these effects have already been unlocked.
The Group's performance over the course of the financial year to date is
thus at the lower end of the Management Board's expectations. The outlook
for the final quarter of the current 2009/10 financial year continues to be
based on the assumption that market conditions will remain far from
satisfactory. Against this backdrop, the Management Board anticipates a
further reduction in VAS despite a good capacity utilisation in web-fed
printing and finishing. The company's earnings performance is expected to
improve fundamentally, as underlined by the results posted for the first
nine months. However, as the company explained when it initially presented
its measures, the full effect of this programme will not become apparent
until the subsequent years. In view of the charges associated with the
execution of the company's restructuring programme, the Management Board
anticipates another significant loss before taxes for the 2009/10 financial
year, both before and after restructuring expenses.
By the forceful execution of the remaining restructuring measures, which in
total will lead to a cost relieve of approx. EUR38 million annually, the
earnings performance of schlott gruppe is set to improve sustainably in
future.
Notes to financial data:
Alongside 'revenue/sales', schlott gruppe uses so-called 'value-added
sales' (VAS) as a financial indicator - both in its external communications
and as part of its internal controlling mechanisms. Revenue is subject to
fluctuations that are attributable to the volume of paper supplied by
customers as raw material for certain projects. In contrast to paper
purchased directly by the company, paper supplied by customers is not
included in the accounts of schlott gruppe. In the 2008/9 financial year,
the paper provision ratio stood at 75.2 per cent. As a financial indicator,
'value-added sales' eliminates fluctuations relating to paper supplied by
customers, thus reflecting the actual sales performance.
schlott gruppe AG
Marco Walz
Investor Relations&PR
Wittlensweilerstr. 3
72250 Freudenstadt
GERMANY
Phone: +49 7441 531-230
Fax : +49 7441 531-204
marco.walz(at)schlottgruppe.de
www.schlottgruppe.de
04.08.2010 08:51 Ad hoc announcement, Financial News and Press Release distributed by DGAP. Medienarchiv atwww.dgap-medientreff.deandwww.dgap.de---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Language: English
Company: schlott gruppe Aktiengesellschaft
Wittlensweilerstraße 3
72250 Freudenstadt
Deutschland
Phone: +49 (0)7441 531-230
Fax: +49 (0)7441 531-204
E-mail: marco.walz(at)schlottgruppe.de
Internet: www.schlottgruppe.de
ISIN: DE0005046304
WKN: 504630
Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr
in Berlin, Düsseldorf, München, Hamburg, Stuttgart
End of News DGAP News-Service
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Datum: 04.08.2010 - 08:51 Uhr
Sprache: Deutsch
News-ID 31879
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