EANS-Adhoc: Westag & Getalit AG
Sales in 2012 stayed at good prior year level;
problems with raw materials weighed on bottom line in 2012; dividend stays at
high level of EUR 1.00 per preference share and EUR 0.94 per ordinary share
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ad-hoc disclosure pursuant to section 15 of the WpHG transmitted by euro adhoc with the aim of a Europe-wide distribution. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Financial Figures/Balance Sheet 14.03.2013 Business trend in 2012 In spite of difficult economic conditions in some of the markets that are relevant for Westag & Getalit AG, the company was able to increase its sales by a moderate 0.1% to EUR 227.4 million in the fiscal year 2012 (2011: EUR 227.1 million). Export sales increased in sync with total sales revenues and were up by 0.3% to EUR 48.9 million (2011: EUR 48.7 million). At 21.5%, the export share stayed at the high level of the previous year. Due to its strong dependence on public building construction, the Plywood/Formwork Division suffered an 8.2% decline in sales revenues to EUR 32.0 million (2011: EUR 34.9 million). The Division was primarily affected by weak economic activity abroad, which was reflected in an 18.8% drop in export sales. The Doors/Frames Division once again boosted its sales revenues by 4.0% to EUR 113.9 million in 2012 (2011: EUR 109.4 million). The Division primarily benefited from strong growth in the private housing construction sector. Sales revenues in the Laminates/Elements Division declined by a moderate 1.2% to EUR 74.8 million (2011: EUR 75.7 million). A slight shift in the product mix affected the Division's total sales. Earnings before income taxes amounted to EUR 10.8 million in the fiscal year, down by 8.4% on the previous year's EUR 11.8 million. The main reason for this were raw materials of inferior quality. Net profit for the year showed the same trend as earnings before taxes and amounted to EUR 7.5 million in the fiscal year 2012 (2011: EUR 8.2 million). Earnings per share stood at EUR 1.35 for the common shares (2011: EUR 1.48) and at EUR 1.41 for the preference shares (2011: EUR 1.54). At today's annual accounts meeting of Westag & Getalit AG, the Supervisory Board approved the financial statements for the fiscal year 2012. This was the first meeting which was attended by new Supervisory Board member Dr. Joachim Schönbeck, Managing Director of SMS Meer GmbH, Mönchengladbach. He was appointed Supervisory Board member by the Gütersloh district court with effect from March 5, 2013 to succeed Ronald Jeffries, who deceased last September. At the Annual General Meeting scheduled to take place in Rheda-Wiedenbrück on July 23, 2013, the Management Board and the Supervisory Board of Westag & Getalit AG will propose to pay out an unchanged dividend of EUR 0.94 per ordinary share and of EUR 1.00 per preference share. This would be equivalent to a dividend yield of 6.4%. This means that we will continue to pursue a solid dividend policy despite the reduction in earnings. Employees At the end of last year, we employed 1,287 people, of whom 1,090 worked at our plant in Wiedenbrück and 197 at our plant in Wadersloh. Capital expenditure Last year saw us invest EUR 10.6 million at our two plants in Wiedenbrück and Wadersloh. The single most important projects were the installation of a new edge processing machine for the Doors/Frames Division and the erection of a new gas co-generation unit, which will further increase our energy efficiency. Outlook The outlook for the German economy - especially for the construction sector - is inconsistent. Economic experts expect the housing construction sector to grow again in 2013, driven by investments in the much-cited "concrete gold". The situation in the public construction sector and probably also in the commercial construction sector will be much more difficult. Against this economic background in the markets that are relevant for Westag & Getalit, we project moderate overall growth for our company, which will be driven by strong activity in the housing construction sector. Our well-positioned product portfolio will allow our company to benefit from this trend. Thanks to the wide range of products, we will seize the opportunities arising outside Germany to expand our export activities. Earnings for the year 2013 will be largely dependent on the trend in raw materials prices. Most importantly, however, we will have to ensure that the raw materials sourced by the Plywood/Formwork Division are again of a consistently satisfactory quality in order to eliminate unplanned extra costs at the production level, which are likely to weigh on the bottom line again in 2013. Assuming that sales will growth moderately and raw materials costs will remain stable, we will aim to generate a satisfactory profit for the year in spite of these adverse circumstances. Further inquiry note: Thomas Sudhoff PR und Finanzkommunikation Tel. +49 (0) 52 42 / 17-5176 IR@westag-getalit.de end of announcement euro adhoc -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- issuer: Westag & Getalit AG Hellweg 15 D-33378 Rheda-Wiedenbrück phone: +49 (0)5242 17 0 FAX: +49 (0)5242 17 75000 mail: ir@westag-getalit.de WWW: http://www.westag-getalit.de sector: Building materials ISIN: DE0007775207, DE0007775231 indexes: CDAX, Classic All Share, Prime All Share stockmarkets: free trade: Berlin, Stuttgart, regulated dealing: Düsseldorf, regulated dealing/prime standard: Frankfurt language: English
Original content of: Westag & Getalit AG, transmitted by news aktuell