NORMA Group SE
NORMA Group AG starts financial year 2013 with stable sales
NORMA Group AG / Key word(s): Quarter Results/Forecast NORMA Group AG starts financial year 2013 with stable sales – With EUR 159.3 million, sales over the first three months almost unchanged – Adjusted EBITA slightly down by 2.9% to EUR 28.3 million – Guidance for financial year 2013 confirmed Maintal, Germany, 7 May 2013 – NORMA Group AG (‘NORMA Group’), a global market and technology leader for engineered joining technology, generated nearly stable sales and earnings in the first quarter of 2013 compared to the reference period in the previous year. Group sales over the first three months of the year amounted to EUR 159.3 million, in line with the previous year (EUR 159.7 million; minus 0.3%). Adjusted operating earnings (EBITA) of NORMA Group declined slightly by 2.9% to EUR 28.3 million in the first quarter of 2013 (previous year: EUR 29.2 million). As a result, the adjusted EBITA margin for the first three months of the financial year amounted to 17.8% (previous year: 18.3%). ‘We are pleased that we could maintain stable sales in the first quarter of 2013 compared to previous year’s quarter, given the still uncertain economic development in Europe. The operating margin remains at a consistently high level,’ says Werner Deggim, CEO of NORMA Group. With EUR 229.1 million, the order backlog as at 31 March 2013 had increased quarter on quarter (31 December 2012: EUR 215.4 million). Acquisitions as growth drivers in EMEA and Asia-Pacific NORMA Group’s sales in the EMEA region increased slightly in the first quarter of 2013 in spite of the overall economic situation. Sales improved by about 1.1% from EUR 99.2 million in the previous year to EUR 100.3 million, with contributions coming from the acquisitions of Connectors Verbindungstechnik in Switzerland, Nordic Metalblok in Italy and Groen Bevestigingsmaterialien in the Netherlands in 2012. In the Americas region, sales over the first three months of 2013 declined by close to 7% from a high EUR 50.2 million in the previous year to EUR 46.7 million on the back of the sluggish economic development in the US. Business in the Asia-Pacific region performed well. Sales in the first quarter of 2013 increased by 19.6% to EUR 12.3 million (previous year: EUR 10.3 million), largely as a result of the acquisition of Chien Jin Plastic in 2012 and the takeover of the distribution business of the Australian Davydick in January 2013. Davydick has been selling joining products for irrigation systems as well as valves and pumps particularly for agriculture and the sanitary and household goods sectors for over 20 years. Solid capital position for the Group NORMA Group again improved its equity by EUR 17.3 million to EUR 305.6 million by 31 March 2013 (31 December 2012: EUR 288.3 million). The equity ratio increased to 42.4% compared to 41.7% at year-end 2012. Net debt ex hedging instruments further decreased and amounted to EUR 172.7 million at the end of the first quarter (31 December 2012: EUR 174.2 million). Acquisitions in 2012 and 2013 and the expansion of existing facilities grew the workforce including temporary staff to 4,666 on 31 March 2013. This represents an increase of 190 employees compared to the previous year. Guidance for 2013 confirmed The forecast for 2013 as published in the annual report 2012 remains unchanged. ‘Although the economic environment proves difficult, we remain confident that we can reach our targets for the year,’ says Werner Deggim. NORMA Group expects sales at Group level to grow moderately year on year in 2013. The company projects additional sales of about EUR 20 million from the acquisitions of the years 2012 and 2013. The Company anticipates an EBITA margin in line with the adjusted margin of over 17% achieved over the three previous years (2010: 17.4%; 2011: 17.7%; 2012: 17.4%). NORMA Group AG – in figures
*Net debt excluding hedging instruments (Q1/2013: EUR 27.6 million). The full report for the first three months of 2012 is available for downloading from www.normagroup.com/publications. Additional information is available from the Investor Relations section at www.normagroup.com. Upcoming events The publication of the financial numbers for the second quarter of financial year 2013 is scheduled for 07 August 2013. Contact Daphne Recker Andreas Trösch About NORMA Group NORMA Group is a global market and technology leader for engineered joining technology. The company manufactures a broad range of innovative engineered joining technology solutions in three product categories (clamp, connect and fluid) offering over 30,000 high quality products and solutions to about 10,000 customers in 100 countries. NORMA Group joining products can be found in vehicles, ships, trains, aircraft, domestic appliances, engines and plumbing systems as well as in applications for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry. NORMA Group generated sales of around EUR 605 million in 2012. With around 4,500 employees, NORMA Group operates a global network of 19 production facilities as well as numerous sales and distribution sites across Europe, the Americas and Asia-Pacific. The company has its headquarters in Maintal near Frankfurt am Main, Germany. NORMA Group was formed in 2006 as a result of the merger of the German Rasmussen Group and the Swedish ABA Group. Since April 2011, NORMA Group is listed on the German stock exchange and included in the MDAX index since March 2013. Disclaimer This press release contains certain future-oriented statements. Future-oriented statements include all statements which do not relate to historical facts and events and contain future-oriented expressions such as ‘believe’, ‘estimate’, ‘assume’, ‘expect’, ‘forecast’, ‘intend’, ‘could’ or ‘should’ or expressions of a similar kind. Such future-oriented statements are subject to risks and uncertainties since they relate to future events and are based on the company’s current assumptions, which may not in the future take place or be fulfilled as expected. The company points out that such future-oriented statements provide no guarantee for the future and that the actual events including the financial position and profitability of the NORMA Group AG and developments in the economic and regulatory fundamentals may vary substantially (particularly on the down side) from those explicitly or implicitly assumed in these statements. Even if the actual assets for the NORMA Group AG, including its financial position and profitability and the economic and regulatory fundamentals, are in accordance with such future-oriented statements in this press release, no guarantee can be given that this will continue to be the case in the future. End of Corporate News 07.05.2013 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP – a company of EquityStory AG. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. DGAP’s Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases. Media archive at www.dgap-medientreff.de and www.dgap.de |
Language: | English | |
Company: | NORMA Group AG | |
Edisonstr. 4 | ||
63477 Maintal | ||
Germany | ||
Phone: | +49 (0)6181-6102-741 | |
Fax: | +49 (0)6181-6102-7641 | |
E-mail: | ir@normagroup.com | |
Internet: | www.normagroup.com | |
ISIN: | DE000A1H8BV3 | |
WKN: | A1H8BV | |
Indices: | MDAX | |
Listed: | Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in Berlin, Düsseldorf, München, Stuttgart | |
End of News | DGAP News-Service |
209916 07.05.2013 |