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S&T AG: Successful with Strong Organic Growth
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25.10.2006
S&T AG: Successful with Strong Organic Growth - 3rd Quarter 2006: Continued clear focus on core industries and services - Forecasts revised upward
25 October 2006. Austria - Vienna. S&T System Integration & Technology Distribution AG closes Q3 2006 with an outstanding result. In the summer months the IT solutions provider generated sales of EUR 113.2 million (+35.6% compared to Q3 2005 with EUR 83.5 million) and an EBIT of EUR 1.5 million (+94.1% compared to EUR 0.8 million in Q3 2005). Sales between January 1st and the end of September 2006 totalled EUR 319.0 million, an increase of 41.9% on the same period in 2005 (2005: EUR 224.7 million). EBIT in the same period amounted to EUR 7.6 million, 131.3% higher than at the end of September 2005 (2005: EUR 3.3 million). This substantial growth is a result from the extremely positive level of incoming orders at the company and S&T AGs consistent implementation of its core industries and services focus.
The third quarter 2006 at S&T was characterised by strong organic growth. Although the Czech Grall Group taken over in April 2006 was consolidated, as a medium-sized investment this did not have a material impact. The same applies to the recently sold Swiss company EFP. The recently acquired Hungarian company Unitis and T-Systems Turkey will probably be consolidated in Q4. In fact this pleasing result clearly reflects the companys focus on software solutions and managed services. "The summer months this year were characterised by continuously full order books and the resulting turnover. Our clear positioning as a total solutions provider has delivered excellent results for eight consecutive quarters. We will continue to place strong emphasis on organic growth, but this does not mean acquisitions will not play a role in future," explained Christian Rosner, CEO of S&T AG.
Strong growth dynamics in the business units Managed Services and Business Solutions The two business segments Managed Services and Business Solutions still have the wind in their sails and remained the business areas with the highest margins in Q3 2006. Managed Services covers orders to increase the productivity of IT systems and the consolidation and optimal alignment of business-critical IT processes within a company. Business Solutions includes all SAP projects, as well as ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) orders, document management and Enterprise Application Integration (e.g. SOA Service Oriented Applications). S&T is one of the leading SAP integrators in CEE and pursues the clear goal of reinforcing and expanding this competitive position.
Czech Republic and Poland the Strongest Countries A comparison of the 18 S&T countries shows the dominance of Poland and the Czech Republic. Their IT markets are highly developed and report strong demand for IT solutions. In the Czech Republic, the medical business was especially successful in Q3. The S&T countries Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Hungary and Ukraine were also extremely dynamic.
Forecast Revised Upward Due to the positive development of business S&T will exceed its original sales and EBIT targets for the financial year 2006 of EUR 400 million and EUR 10 million respectively. In fact, annual sales are now expected to total approximately EUR 430 million and EBIT approximately EUR 11 million. The fourth quarter will also be characterised by strong growth in the solutions business. "Our project pipeline is nicely filled and we do not rule out one or the other acquisition," said Rosner.
Overview of S&T Results:
Q3 2006 (EUR million) Q3 2005 (EUR Million) Change* Sales 113,2 83,5 +35,6% EBIT 1,5 0,8 +94,1% Jan.-Sept. 2006 (EUR million) Jan.-Sept. 2005 (EUR Million) Change* Sales 319,0 224,7 +41,9% EBIT 7,6 3,3 + 131,3%
* Calculated on the basis of unrounded figures.
Conference Call S&T management will be available for a conference call on October 25th, 2006, at 16:00 CET. In order to participate, please call +49 (0)69 2222 7111 from Germany, +43 (0)1 7957 6055 for Austrian participants and +44 (0)20 7784 1004 for participants from the UK a few minutes before the start of the conference.
As an additional service, a recording of the conference call will be available from November 3, 2006, on the S&T homepage: http://www.snt.at
About S&T - www.snt.at - XETRA Vienna: SNT With some 2,350 employees (fte) S&T is the leading provider for IT solutions and services for customers in Central and Eastern Europe. The company develops and implements custom-tailored IT solutions for large and medium-sized telecommunications companies, banks, power utilities, manufacturing companies and public institutions. Through our subsidiaries in 18 countries we realise cross-border IT structures, offering our clients outstanding solutions and service competence.
end of announcement euro adhoc 25.10.2006 09:38:40
Further inquiry note:
Gabriela Mair
Head of Corporate Communications
T: +43 (0)1 367 80 88-1024
M: +43 664 60191 1024
Gabriela.Mair@snt.at
Branche: Computing & Information Technology
ISIN: AT0000905351
WKN:
Index: WBI, ATX Prime
Börsen: Wiener Börse AG / official market