SW Umwelttechnik Stoiser & Wolschner AG
euro adhoc: SW Umwelttechnik Stoiser & Wolschner AG
Financial Figures/Balance
Sheet
SW Umwelttechnik board hails "unique" CSE opportunities
at results press conference
Disclosure announcement transmitted by euro adhoc. The issuer is responsible for the content of this announcement.
annual report
18.04.2007
* Revenue up by 12% * Record E15.8 million investment programme * Further expansion in Romania and land purchases in Bulgaria and Serbia slated
At a press conference today joint chief executives DI Heinz Wolschner and Dr. Bernd Wolschner unveiled SW Umwelttechnik's results for 2006. They highlighted the "unique opportunity" for the group presented by the new EU members in Southeastern Europe, due to the "huge demand" for its water conservation and infrastructure products. And they aired plans to expand into potential EU candidate countries including Moldavia, Serbia and Ukraine in order to gain early mover advantage.
Revenue Revenue was up by 12% to E101.9 million (m) in 2006 (2005: E91.2m); the gain was entirely generated by organic growth.
SW Umwelttechnik's main geographical market, Hungary was again the key growth driver, revenue rising by 16% to E67.5m - 66% of total consolidated revenue. Austrian revenue was down by 11% to E23m, mainly as a result of a fall-off in order intake by the biogas plant business. The decline was partly offset by an improvement in the Infrastructure sector's revenue performance. Early stage business development in Romania made excellent headway in all sectors, and revenue almost doubled to E7.8m, accounting for 8% of total revenue. The proportion accounted for by other countries such as Croatia, Italy, Slovakia and Slovenia was unchanged at 4%.
The Water Conservation sector posted an 8% increase in revenue. The strongest segmental growth was recorded by the Infrastructure sector, due to excellent capacity utilisation, with revenue up by 18%. The revenue contribution of the Engineering sector grew by a somewhat disappointing 6%. Sewerage project orders were very strong, but the biogas reactor business completely dried up due to uncertainties about electricity injection tariffs. In consequence, Biogest Umwelttechnik GmbH was deconsolidated as at 1 January 2007. The segmental breakdown of revenue was virtually unchanged in 2006. The Infrastructure sector's revenue contribution rose from 41% to 43%, that of the Water Conservation business was steady at 32% and that of the Engineering sector dropped again, from 27% to 25%, due to the decline in Austrian sales.
Earnings Earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) advanced by 5% to E4.1m (2005: E3.9m) despite one-time closure and decommissioning costs of E1.2m related to the shutdown of two Austrian factories. The EBIT margin held at 4%, but the like- for-like margin with closure costs stripped out progressed past the 5% mark.
EBITDA topped the previous record of E9.2m by 7%, creating a solid platform for further expansion.
Finance cost improved to E1.2m (2005: E2.0m) due to the stabilisation of the forint exchange rate in the second half and the steady appreciation of the Romanian lei. Shifting debt to Austria reduced exposure to forint exchange rate risk.
Profit on ordinary activities (POA) was 52% up year on year at E2.9m. A 54% year-on-year increase lifted profit for the period to E2.1m - one of the strongest performances in the group's history.
Earnings per share were E3.21 compared with E2.21 in 2005.
Assets and finances Total assets rose by 18.6% to E95.5m (2005: E80.5m), buoyed by working capital which grew along with revenue and by the extensive investment programme implemented during the year.
Equity increased from E24.3m to E26.5m due to retained earnings. However the equity ratio fell from 30.1% to 27.7%.
Employees SW Umwelttechnik employed an average of 836 people in 2006 - 4.5% more than in the previous year. The Austrian workforce was downsized from 209 to 193 while the higher head counts of 583 in Hungary (2005: 556) and of 60 in Romania (2005: 35) reflected the positive trend in these growth markets. The group's strong performance was also reflected in a 7% gain in output per employee to E121,000 (2005: E113,000).
Capital expenditure A record E15.8m investment programme (2005: E10.2m; 2004: E3.5m) boosted capacity in Hungary and accelerated expansion in Romania.
In Hungary the group invested E8.1m in introducing new product lines while also doubling the production capacity of some existing products. In Romania E6.4m was spent on construction of the group's first factory, in Timisoara, the commencement of work on a plant in Bucharest and the acquisition of land in Targu Mures.
Order backlog Order backlog at balance sheet date was 33% down year on year, at E25.9m, reflecting strong deliveries in the last quarter of 2006 as well as the impact of restructuring. In spite of this, management does not expect revenue to decline in 2007.
Dividend recommendation Due to the group's positive operating performance the Management Board will be recommending an increased divided of E0.30 per share for the 2006 financial year (2005: E0.25/share).
Outlook
. In Hungary heavy investment in modern production equipment and the market
leadership in the water conservation and infrastructure product segments
have given SW Umwelttechnik a strong cost advantage over the competition
which it is set to extend in 2007.
. In Austria the rationalisation programme is expected to bring significant
improvements in earnings resulting in turnaround.
. In Romania, the first phase of the construction of capacity for the
Infrastructure sector and the ramp-up of capacity for the Water
Conservation sector at the Bucharest site will be implemented in 2007. In
addition, preparations will be made for the commencement of works at the
Targu Mures site in Central Transylvania, expected to take place in 2007.
. A start will be made with market development in neighbouring Bulgaria,
Moldavia, Serbia and Ukraine, using products exported from Hungary and
Romania. Preparations are also being made to purchase land to build
production facilities in these countries. If SW Umwelttechnik succeeds in
breaking into these markets the aim is to build one to two plants there
each year.
. The disposal of property not related to operations, which often results
from investments, is expected to contribute an annual E2m to earnings and
financing over the next four years.Due to the positive outlook for the Central and Southeast European market, last
year's heavy investment and restructuring in Austria, management is raising its guidance on EBIT, POA, profit after tax and EPS including property activities from 50% to at least 75% growth, on stable revenue.
SW Umwelttechnik is hoping to return to the Vienna Stock Exchange prime market in 2007. Since the company meets all the criteria this is a realistic target for mid-2007 on current share price trends.
Financial highlights |In Em |2006 |2005 |Increase | |Revenue |101.9 |91.2 |12% | |EBIT |4.1 |3.9 |5% | |EBITDA |9.2 |8.6 |7% | |POA |2.9 |1.9 |53% |
end of announcement euro adhoc 18.04.2007 08:00:00
Further inquiry note:
Dr. Bernd Wolschner, member of the Management Board
Tel: +43 (0)664 3413953; fax: +43 (0)7259 31356
Michaela Wolschner, Investor Relations
Tel: +43 (0)664 8117662; fax: +43 (0)1 8772617
Web: www.sw-umwelttechnik.com
Branche: Technology
ISIN: AT0000808209
WKN: 910497
Index: WBI
Börsen: Börse Berlin-Bremen / free trade
Frankfurter Wertpapierbörse / free trade
Wiener Börse AG / Regulated free trade