EANS-News: BAUER Aktiengesellschaft
Widespread backing from shareholders at
AGM of BAUER AG
Schrobenhausen (euro adhoc) -
Professor Thomas Bauer reaffirms full-year forecast and looks to the future with confidence All agenda items passed by a large majority Dividend payment of EUR 0.60 per share
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Annual & Special Corporate Meetings
Subtitle: Professor Thomas Bauer reaffirms full-year forecast and looks to the future with confidence All agenda items passed by a large majority Dividend payment of EUR 0.60 per share
At today's Annual General Meeting of BAUER AG, Chairman of the Management Board Professor Thomas Bauer was in confident mood. The company reaffirmed its full-year forecast, and received backing for its strategy from shareholders.
"We have been seeing stable order receipts for a number of months now, and we are able to assess trends in our business with much greater certainty than we were six or nine months ago," the Chairman asserted in reaffirming the company's full-year forecast. In line with that confidence, the BAUER Group forecasts total Group revenues around the previous year's level and after-tax profit of EUR 40 million. "If the economy keeps on track as it has done over the last two to three months, it seems likely that we will have come through the worst of the downturn," Bauer stated. "Our business is recovering, and in the Middle East and the USA we are even performing rather better than expected." By contrast, the economic situation in Greece and other Central European countries remains a cause for concern.
Professor Bauer believes the Group's long-term strategic approach has proved effective: "Our strategic direction is right. Our three segments - Construction, Equipment and Resources - provide us with a broad international base and place us in an excellent position to meet the challenges of the future."
Investment in the future: New training workshop for apprentices in Schrobenhausen
As an example of the company's investment in the future, and a clear statement of faith in its home base location, Bauer highlighted the conversion of the Schrobenhausen anchor production hall, built in 1989, into a new training workshop. For the technical apprentices among the overall total of 140 apprentices, this will provide ideal conditions for learning a wide range of technical disciplines and trades. In addition to the training workshop, the building also houses a carpentry shop and a small office and communal section. "We are very keen on providing young people with a sound foundation for their career development," Professor Bauer states. "They are, after all, key to the future of our business. Many of the present-day management staff started out on our apprenticeship schemes and worked their way steadily through the ranks."
Shareholders back corporate strategy
The widespread backing of shareholders for the strategy adopted by the Group was reflected in the speeches made and in the voting. All agenda items were passed by a large majority. 98.4 percent of the voting capital voted in favour of ratifying the actions of the Management Board and 98.5 percent voted to ratify the actions of the Supervisory Board. 84.9 percent of the votes cast at the AGM approved the system of remuneration for members of the Management Board. BAUER AG is paying a dividend of EUR 0.60 per share for the past financial year. That represents a distribution of some EUR 10.3 million to the company's shareholders. Shareholders also authorized the Management Board to acquire treasury stock through to the year 2015.
The AGM was attended by some 500 shareholders and shareholders' representatives at the company's home base in Schrobenhausen.
About Bauer
Bauer is a provider of services, machinery and ancillary products in the earth- working and groundwater fields. The Group markets its products and services all over the world. Its global spread allows it to remain largely unaffected by fluctuating business cycles.
The operations of the Group are divided into three segments: 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 it is the world market leader, Bauer 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, in environmental technology, in geothermal drilling operations and also in equipment for wells (including pumps and drills, screens and casings).
Bauer profits greatly from the collaboration between its three separate segments, 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 more than two thirds of its total revenues outside of Germany. Employing some 8,900 people, the Group's total revenues in 2009 were EUR 1.28 billion (previous year: EUR 1.53 billion). BAUER Aktiengesellschaft has been listed on the official market of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since July 4, 2006 (Prime Standard, ISIN DE0005168108).
end of announcement euro adhoc
Further inquiry note:
Bettina Erhart / Christopher Wolf
Investor Relations
Telefon: +49(0)8252 97 1918
E-Mail: investor.relations@bauer.de
Branche: Construction & Property
ISIN: DE0005168108
WKN: 516810
Index: MDAX, CDAX, Classic All Share, Prime All Share
Börsen: Frankfurt / regulated dealing/prime standard
Berlin / free trade
Hamburg / free trade
Stuttgart / free trade
Düsseldorf / free trade
München / free trade