EANS-News: Construction group STRABAG SE confirms solid outlook
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Corporate news transmitted by euro adhoc. The issuer/originator is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Earnings Forecast/Outlook Wien (euro adhoc) - * EBIT forecast 2011 raised to EUR 340 million, net income after minorities still expected at EUR 185 million * 2012: Growth with inflation likely * Adjusted forecasts of subsidiary STRABAG AG, Cologne, have no impact on STRABAG SE outlook Vienna, 21 November 2011 The turbulence caused by the euro debt crisis has so far not affected the output or the expected results of the STRABAG Group over the course of the current 2011 financial year. While state investment programmes in markets such as Germany had supported the construction industry through the middle of the year, the sector already has several difficult years behind it in countries with lower public-sector spending - such as Hungary - or in the Adriatic region. The course of business so far this year has shown notably higher results in Poland as well as internationally, where significant write-downs had dampened results the year before. On the other hand, the company has had to accept market-dependent losses in the construction materials business as well as losses due to the low capacity use of large equipment and machinery in the fields of waterway and railway construction. A loss-making project in Scandinavia as well as one-off costs related to the integration of transacted enterprise acquisitions in Germany led STRABAG AG, Cologne, a subsidiary of STRABAG SE, to downwardly adjust its results estimate. An ad-hoc notice in this regard was released on 21 November 2011. Thanks to the successful strategy of regional diversification and the related diversification of risk, however, STRABAG SE can confirm its existing forecast for the further general course of business. Nevertheless, individual parameters are being adjusted in the face of the more detailed information that is now available for the 2011 financial year: STRABAG had previously expected earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of EUR 320 million, corresponding to a margin on the output of 2.3 %. Less the expected interest result, a tax rate of 30 % and minority interest of approximately EUR 25 million, this would have resulted in net income after minorities of EUR 185 million. This target remains unchanged; however, STRABAG is raising its forecast for the EBIT to EUR 340 million and for minority interest to EUR 40 million. The outlook for the output remains at EUR 14.0 billion for the full year 2011. This corresponds to an expected rise of around 10 % over the previous year. The segments Building Construction & Civil Engineering, Transportation Infrastructures and Special Divisions & Concessions as well as Other are expected to contribute EUR 5.1 billion, EUR 6.3 billion, EUR 2.5 billion and EUR 0.1 billion to the output, respectively. For 2012, STRABAG remains convinced of growing at most with inflation across all markets and of raising its output to approximately EUR 14.3 billion. STRABAG bases these forecasts on the assumptions that the economic framework in Europe will remain unchanged in the coming year. This means that the financing environment for our private and industrial clients may not worsen, at the same time that a rapid recovery of the conditions or significantly higher government spending is not to be expected in the STRABAG core markets. The forecasts made in May 2011 on the individual results-related items and planned expenditures are currently being reworked and will not be published until after clear and meaningful information becomes available on the general economic situation and on the political decisions regarding the euro debt crisis, most likely, however, in the spring of 2012. STRABAG expects that earnings in the Transportations Infrastructures segment will stay weak in the next year, while a compensating development of the other segments could be possible. Further inquiry note: STRABAG SE Diana Klein, CFA Head of Corporate Communications Tel: +43-1-22422-1116 diana.klein@strabag.com end of announcement euro adhoc -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- company: STRABAG SE Donau-City-Straße 9 A-1220 Wien phone: +43 1 22422 -0 FAX: +43 1 22422 - 1177 mail: www.strabag.com WWW: investor.relations@strabag.com sector: Construction & Property ISIN: AT000000STR1, AT0000A05HY9 indexes: WBI, ATX Prime, ATX, SATX stockmarkets: official market: Wien language: English
Original content of: STRABAG SE, transmitted by news aktuell