Bauer posts excellent 2007 half-year interim results
Schrobenhausen, August 14, 2007 - (euro adhoc) -
. Total Group revenues increased to EUR 562.5 million . Profit after tax increased to over EUR 18 million . Full-year 2007 profit forecast raised
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BAUER Aktiengesellschaft made effective use of highly positive market conditions to improve all its key figures in the first half of 2007. With after-tax profit for the period up 215 percent to EUR 18.6 million, Bauer more than tripled its previous year comparative figure of EUR 5.9 million.
Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) in the period improved strongly, by more than 128 percent, to EUR 42.1 million (previous year: EUR 18.5 million).
Organic growth in all segments of the business helped total Group revenues climb just under 24 percent to EUR 562.5 million (previous year: EUR 453.9 million).
With a broad range of state-of-the-art machinery, the Bauer Equipment segment increased its revenues by more than 32 percent to EUR 287.2 million (previous year: EUR 216.7 million). Segment EBIT rose significantly, by more than 100 percent, to EUR 38.5 million (previous year: EUR 18.5 million). There was increased demand not only for the specialist foundation engineering product range but also for machinery used in the new business fields of well drilling, geothermal drilling and exploration drilling for mine operators.
Construction segment revenues increased by 3.6 percent to EUR 246.8 million (previous year: EUR 238.3 million). The recovery in the German construction industry and the extraordinarily mild winter weather enabled Bauer to improve its domestic revenues substantially over the previous year. By the end of the first six months the Construction segment had already achieved a positive EBIT of EUR 3.7 million (previous year: EUR -0.2 million).
The first half of 2007 saw the new fields of business of the BAUER Group bundled into a new, third segment, named Resources. Revenues in this segment totalled EUR 58.6 million, generated from services in the mining, geothermal energy and environmental technology fields, as well as from well engineering. The German Water and Energy (GWE) Group acquired in May this year contributed EUR 30.5 million to that total.
Orders in hand totalling EUR 463.8 million are a healthy 8.7 percent up on the previous year comparative (previous year: EUR 426.8 million). In the Equipment segment, the dynamism on global markets has seen orders in hand rise even more strongly, by over 45 percent. Owing to the still poor financial returns from domestic construction projects, and the company's cautious approach to taking on new work on the German market as a result, orders in hand in the Construction segment are down by more than 12 percent. In the Resources segment, orders in hand increased by 83 percent as a result of the acquisition of GWE.
Outlook
The growing global market for construction services and machinery offers Bauer opportunities for further substantial growth. In the first half of the year numerous innovations were successfully implemented in the Equipment segment. The recovering construction market in Germany is providing opportunities to improve financial returns from domestic projects. The expansion of business into new fields has been effectively implemented through the new Resources segment, and will continue to be driven forward in a focussed manner.
Against this background, Chairman of the Management Board Professor Thomas Bauer has raised the net profit forecast for the current financial year from so far at least EUR 45 million to at least EUR 50 million: "We expect total Group revenues to rise by more than 20 percent to around EUR 1.2 billion (previous year: EUR 980 million). Profit after tax is expected to rise by more than 40 percent against the previous year, to at least EUR 50 million (previous year: EUR 35.2 million)."
About Bauer
Bauer is an international provider of services, equipment and ancillary products for soil and groundwater. The Group markets its products and services all over the world. That global spread allows it to remain largely unaffected by fluctuating business cycles.
The operations of the Group are divided into three divisions: Construction, Equipment and Resources. The Construction segment carries out specialist foundation engineering work all over the world, developing foundation and excavation projects as well as providing related construction services. In its Equipment segment, in which Bauer is the world market leader, the Group offers an extensive range of machinery, equipment and tools for specialist foundation engineering. The Resources segment encompasses the Group's operations in the exploitation of raw materials, environmental technology, geothermal drilling and well engineering materials (including pumps and drills, screens and casings).
Bauer benefits greatly from the collaboration and synergy between its three separate divisions, enabling the Group to position itself as an innovative, highly specialized provider of complete solutions and services for demanding projects on the specialist foundation engineering and related markets.
Founded in 1790, Bauer today generates over two thirds of its revenues outside of Germany. Employing over 5,500 people, the Group's total revenues in 2006 were EUR 980 million (previous year: EUR 824 million). BAUER Aktiengesellschaft has been listed in official trading (Prime Standard, ISIN DE0005168108) on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since July 4, 2006.
GROUP KEY FIGURES, 1st half-year 2007 (IFRS)
| |06 / 2006 |06 / 2007 |Change | | |in EUR |in EUR million | | | |million | | | |Total Group revenues*, |453.9 |562.5 |+ 23.9 % | |of which | | | | |- Construction |238.3 |246.8 |+ 3.6 % | |- Equipment |216.7 |287.2 |+ 32.5 % | |- Resources | 26.0 | 58.6 |+ 125.2 % | |- Consolidation / Other |- 27.1 |- 30.1 | n/a | |Consolidated revenues |430.2 |534.3 |+ 24.2 % | |Orders in hand |426.8 |463.8 |+ 8.7 % | |EBITDA | 42.2 | 65.9 |+ 56.0 % | |EBIT | 18.5 | 42.1 |+ 128.4 % | |of which | | | | |- Construction | - 0.2 | 3.7 | n/a | |- Equipment | 18.5 | 38.5 |+ 107.9 % | |- Resources | 0.5 | 1.2 |+ 128.3 % | |- Consolidation / Other | - 0.3 | - 1.3 | n/a | |Profit** | 5.9 | 18.6 |+ 215.1 % | |Earnings per share in EUR***| 0.38 EUR | 1.05 EUR |+ 176.3 % | |Employees | 5.494 | 6.507 |+ 18.4 % |
* At variance with the consolidated revenues presented in the Group income statement, the total Group revenues presented here include portions of revenues from associated companies as well as revenues of non-consolidated subsidiaries and joint ventures.
** Before minority interests.
*** Diluted and basic, following share split.
end of announcement euro adhoc 14.08.2007 08:00:00
Further inquiry note:
Bettina Mestenhauser
Head of Investor Relations
Telefon: +49(0)8252 97 1918
E-Mail: bettina.mestenhauser@bauer.de
Branche: Construction & Property
ISIN: DE0005168108
WKN: 516810
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