Wuppertal, 10 April 2008 – GESCO AG is celebrating its tenth anniversary as a listed company: On 24 March 1998 the company was traded in the official market of the Frankfurt and Düsseldorf stock exchanges for the first time.
In these 10 years the company has performed very positively in operating business and on the capital market. Average annual growth rates in Group sales of 10 % and 18.5 % in Group net income after minority interests are proof of a business model which is a lasting success. With average annual returns of around 10 % shareholders have participated in this development. In a 10-year comparison, the GESCO share has outperformed the relevant indexes and its peer group.
In its anniversary year, GESCO AG is letting its Group workforce and its shareholders participate in this success.
All approx. 1,710 GESCO Group employees are going to be getting a one-off bonus payment of EUR 250, which is tax-exempt for employees who are subject to taxation in Germany.
In the year it is celebrating a decade as a listed company, GESCO is going to be paying its shareholders a bonus of 10 % on the regular distributed dividend for the financial year 2007/2008 which ended on 31 March 2008. The proposed dividend is scheduled to be published at the end of May and the Annual General Meeting for the financial year 2007/2008 is going to be on 21 August 2008.
GESCO Executive Board member Dr. Hans-Gert Mayrose: “The combination of bonuses on dividends and salaries highlights that GESCO’s management is committed to the company’s shareholders as well as the employees at our subsidiaries. The successes recorded in the last years would have been unthinkable without our employees’ dedication, creativity and identification with the company. We believe that appreciating the significance of employees’ contributions is typical for the SME segment. In addition to sophisticated technical equipment, which we invest in regularly to keep at the cutting-edge, relying on a skilled and highly-motivated workforce is the key to success.