DGAP-News: GESCO sees lively start to the new financial year

DGAP-News: Gesco AG / Key word(s): Quarterly / Interim Statement/Quarterly / Interim Statement

14.08.2018 / 07:20
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.


 

  • Incoming orders in the first quarter slightly above the high levelof the previous year, sales rise, disproportionately high increase in earnings
  • Record number of incoming orders and growth in sales in the second quarter
  • Outlook for financial year confirmed

Wuppertal, 14 August 2018 - The Prime Standard-listed GESCO Group started off the new financial year 2018/2019 (1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019) full of momentum and was able to exceed the figures in the previous year's quarter, which were already very high. Despite all of the political uncertainties, the economic impetus held on and the GESCO Group managed to turn it into successful operational business throughout its companies.

In the first quarter, which comprises the subsidiaries' operating business from January to March 2018, the GESCO Group generated incoming orders worth EUR 150.4 million, just slightly surpassing the unusually high result of EUR 148.7 million recorded in the previous-year period. This corresponds to an increase of 1.2 %. Protomaster GmbH, sold in December 2017, was still included in the previous year's figures, which means that in organic terms, growth stood at 3.3 % after adjusting the previous year's values for the Protomaster incoming orders. Sales for the same period increased from EUR 133.4 million to EUR 140.8 million, which represents growth of 5.6 %. The organic growth rate in this regard was 7.2 %. Key earnings figures climbed disproportionately to sales figures. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) rose by 20.1 % to EUR 13.1 million (previous-year period: EUR 10.9 million), and Group net income after minority interest jumped by 31.8 % to EUR 7.4 million (EUR 5.6 million).

Three of the four segments were able to generate more incoming orders and sales compared with the same period in the previous year; only the Mobility Technology segment recorded lower incoming orders while sales grew.

The brisk business activity continued in the second quarter, which comprises the subsidiaries' operating business from April to June 2018. According to preliminary figures, incoming orders at around EUR 160 million exceeded the previous-year figure of EUR 127.6 million by more than 25 %, thereby setting a new record. At around EUR 138 million, sales were around 5 % up on the previous-year figure of EUR 131.3 million. In organic terms, incoming orders would have been up by around 28 % and sales by around 9 %.

At the accounts press conference on 28 June 2018, the Executive Board forecasted Group sales of EUR 550 million to EUR 560 million and Group net income after minority interest of EUR 26 million to EUR 27 million for financial year 2018/2019. Based on the information available at the present time, the company confirms this forecast.

Ralph Rumberg, Speaker of the Executive Board: "We have created a sound basis for the second half of the year with the strong level of incoming orders in the first two quarters, even though some of them will only be posted as sales in the next financial year, especially in the Production Process Technology segment. All things considered, we have reason to be optimistic about the continued course of the current financial year, although we expect business to normalise to a certain degree in the second half of the year. In some areas of the Mobility Technology segment, we are also seeing a challenging environment with pressure on margins remaining high. As a whole, we confirm the outlook that we presented at the accounts press conference on 28 June 2018."

The complete quarterly statement is available at www.gesco.de/reports.

GESCO Group key figures for the first quarter (1 April to 30 June 2018)
of financial year 2018/2019 pursuant to IFRS:

         
    1st quarter
2018/2019
1st quarter
2017/2018
Change
         
Incoming orders EUR'000 150,413 148,656 +1.2 %
Sales EUR'000 140,825 133,416 +5.6 %
EBITDA EUR'000 18,720 17,487 +7.1 %
EBIT EUR'000 13,089 10,897 +20.1 %
Earnings before tax EUR'000 12,470 10,266 +21.5 %
Group net income after minority interest EUR'000 7,404 5,618 +31.8 %
Earnings per share pursuant to IFRS EUR 0.68 0.52 +31.8 %
Employees No. 2,507 2,588 -3.1 %
 

About GESCO
GESCO AG is an industrial group made up of market and technology leading companies in the capital goods industry. Its focus is on production process technology, resource technology, healthcare and infrastructure technology and mobility technology. As a stock company listed in the Prime Standard, GESCO AG offers private and institutional investors access to a portfolio of hidden champions among Germany's industrial SMEs.

Investor Relations - Oliver Vollbrecht
Phone +49 202 24820-18 - Fax +49 202 24820-49
Email: info@gesco.de - Website: www.gesco.de



 


14.08.2018 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

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