HÖRMANN Group publishes 2018 interim report

HÖRMANN Industries GmbH (corporate bond, German Securities Code Number (WKN): A2AAZG) today published its half-yearly financial statements for 2018. The company recorded sales and earnings growth in the first six months of 2018. Sales increased by 19.2% year-on-year to EUR 287.1 million in the first six months of 2018 (H1 2017: EUR 240.9 million). Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT**) rose by 83.3% to EUR 7.9 million (H1 2017: EUR 4.3 million). This growth was driven by positive development in all four segments. Consolidated net income also improved from EUR 1.9 million (H1 2017) to EUR 4.3 million.

Johann Schmid-Davis, CFO of HÖRMANN Industries GmbH, commented, ‘We are very happy with the excellent results from the first half of 2018, which exceeded our expectations by quite a distance. In light of this good performance and the fact that we anticipate that incoming orders will remain stable, we have decided to adjust our sales and earnings forecast for 2018 as a whole upwards. Nonetheless, we cannot rest on our laurels just yet. We need to continue working on our efficiency and productivity, particularly in the Automotive segment.’

As announced in the forecast upgrade dated 19 September 2018, HÖRMANN Group is expecting consolidated sales to increase to around EUR 590 million to EUR 600 million in the 2018 financial year (previously: EUR 560 million) and for EBIT to rise to between EUR 19 million and EUR 20 million (previously: EUR 15 million).

A consistently healthy order book meant that sales in the Automotive divisions grew over the first six months of 2018, rising 16.4% to EUR 214.5 million (H1 2017: EUR 184.2 million). EBIT improved to EUR 4.4 million (H1 2017: EUR 1.3 million) but remained affected by high production costs at the two factories in Penzberg and Gustavsburg in particular. The company is planning to make production more flexible and efficient and to bolster its competitive position over the coming years by making targeted investments in automation and relocating labour-intensive products to the factory in Slovakia. Consequently, earnings this year will again reflect the impact of these activities aimed at re-aligning the way the company does business.

Furthermore, the Automotive division is currently being represented at the IAA Commercial Vehicle Show in Hanover for the first time. Until 27 September 2018, the company will be showcasing its innovative integral chassis concept aimed particularly at the future of urban delivery logistics. This chassis is designed specifically to be used with alternative drive systems and its lightweight structural approach reflects the cost sensitivity of the transport industry in particular, as well as the vehicle design requirements of electric light commercial vehicles.
The Engineering division also benefited from the strong economy in Germany in the first half of 2018. At EUR 17.4 million, sales were up 6.7% year-on-year (H1 2017: EUR 16.3 million). Thanks to the well-filled order book and the associated high project management costs, particularly in relation to vehicle development, EBIT fell from EUR 2.1 million to EUR 1.4 million in the first half of 2018.

Sales in the Communication division amounted to EUR 39.1 million in the first six months of 2018 (H1 2017: EUR 33.5 million). EBIT improved from EUR 1.3 million to EUR 3.1 million. Funkwerk AG, which is integrated in this division, showed particularly good progress in the first half of the year. On the basis of higher capacity utilisation and continuing improvement in cost structures as well as quality and process workflows, the subsidiary contributed EUR 34.3 million to sales and EUR 3.0 million to EBIT in the Communication division.

Performance in the Services division, which was established last year and was reinforced and expanded in the fourth quarter of 2017 by the acquisition of a controlling interest in the MAT Group, surpassed expectations in the period under review. It generated sales of EUR 16.1 million in the first six months (H1 2017: EUR 6.9 million). As expected, EBIT was still impacted by integration costs, amounting to EUR -0.2 million (H1 2017: EUR 0.1 million).

The full 2018 interim financial statements of HÖRMANN Industries GmbH are available to download at https://www.hoermann-gruppe.com/en/investor-relations/financial-reports/financial-reports

The PDF contains selected key figures for HÖRMANN Industries GmbH.