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| Datum : | 05.05.2014 |
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DGAP-News: Wacker Chemie AG: WACKER POSTS SIGNIFICANT SALES AND EARNINGS GROWTH IN Q1 2014 |
| Meldung : | DGAP-News: Wacker Chemie AG / Key word(s): Quarter Results Wacker Chemie AG: WACKER POSTS SIGNIFICANT SALES AND EARNINGS GROWTH IN Q1 2014 05.05.2014 / 07:14 --------------------------------------------------------------------- - GROUP SALES FOR Q1 2014 REACH EUR1.16 BILLION, UP 8 PERCENT YEAR ON YEAR AND 6 PERCENT QUARTER ON QUARTER - EVERY DIVISION INCREASES VOLUMES AND SALES THANKS TO STRONGER CUSTOMER DEMAND - FIRST-QUARTER EBITDA COMES IN AT EUR285 MILLION, WITH NON-RECURRING EFFECTS CONTRIBUTING TO ITS INCREASE OF 73 PERCENT ON A YEAR AGO AND 80 PERCENT ON Q4 2013 - NET INCOME FOR Q1 2014 AMOUNTS TO EUR64 MILLION - FORECAST UNCHANGED: FOR FULL-YEAR 2014, WACKER EXPECTS GROUP SALES TO RISE BY A MID-SINGLE-DIGIT PERCENTAGE, WITH EBITDA CLIMBING AT LEAST 10 PERCENT ABOVE THE PRIOR-YEAR LEVEL Munich, May 5, 2014 - Wacker Chemie AG generated both year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter sales growth from January through March 2014, thanks especially to higher volumes. In Q1 2014, the Munich-based chemical company generated sales of EUR1,157.4 million after EUR1,076.3 million in the prior-year period. This is almost 8 percent more than in the prior-year period and 6 percent up from the preceding quarter (EUR1,086.9 million). All five business divisions contributed to this growth. Overall, WACKER therefore more than compensated for price pressure in some product segments and for unfavorable exchange-rate effects due to the weaker US dollar and Japanese yen. The increase in WACKER's first-quarter 2014 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) clearly outpaced sales growth, rising to EUR285.2 million (Q1 2013: EUR164.5 million). That is a good 73 percent up from a year ago and about 80 percent more than in Q4 2013 (EUR158.1 million). The EBITDA margin was 24.6 percent, compared with 15.3 percent in Q1 2013 and 14.5 percent in Q4 2013. The Group's earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) from January through March 2014 amounted to EUR133.8 million, a fourfold increase over the prior-year period (Q1 2013: EUR32.2 million).The corresponding EBIT margin was 11.6 percent (Q1 2013: 3.0 percent). Net income for the quarter under review was EUR64.2 million (Q1 2013: EUR5.1 million) and earnings per share amounted to EUR1.35 (Q1 2013: EUR0.08). In addition to high volumes and better solar-silicon prices, the principal factor in this strong increase was special income recognized at the WACKER POLYSILICON business division, where the Group restructured its contractual relationships with a solar-sector customer in the quarter under review. As part of that agreement, WACKER retained advance payments and received damages totaling EUR114.0 million (Q1 2013: EUR32.2 million). Adjusted for this special income, EBITDA grew by approximately 29 percent year on year. WACKER's full-year 2014 forecast remains unchanged. The company expects Group sales in 2014 to increase by a mid-single-digit percentage (2013: EUR4.48 billion). Fiscal 2014's EBITDA is expected to be at least 10 percent higher than in 2013 (EUR679 million). Group net income should also rise compared to the previous year. "WACKER had a good start to the new fiscal year in Q1 2014," said CEO Rudolf Staudigl in Munich on Monday. "Customer demand for our products rose noticeably throughout all divisions in the first quarter. At the same time, price pressures have eased in a number of segments. Especially for solar silicon, we are seeing better prices than a year ago. Our sales and earnings trend in Q1 and our current order level are supporting our optimistic view on the coming months." Regions Asia continued to reinforce its position as the WACKER Group's most significant sales region by far in the reporting quarter, with the Group generating some 42 percent (Q1 2013: 40 percent) of total sales in Asia. At EUR490.2 million (Q1 2013: EUR434.7 million), sales there were up almost 13 percent year on year. All business divisions exceeded their respective prior-year sales. The increase was particularly strong at Siltronic, where the first-time consolidation of Siltronic Silicon Wafer Pte. Ltd. in the WACKER Group contributed positively to the sales trend. WACKER SILICONES' and WACKER POLYMERS' sales in Asia saw double-digit growth as well. Relative to the preceding quarter (EUR472.8 million), WACKER increased total Group sales in Asia by almost 4 percent. In Europe, WACKER generated sales of EUR274.1 million from January through March 2014 (Q1 2013: EUR256.7 million). This is almost 7 percent more than a year ago and just over 10 percent more than in Q4 2013 (EUR248.3 million). Apart from Siltronic, all business divisions grew their sales in Europe - both year on year and quarter on quarter. Alongside the usual seasonal effects, the mild winter and the upturn in the economy contributed positively to the chemical-business trend in this region. Sales of semiconductor wafers, on the other hand, did not reach prior-year or prior-quarter levels due to negative price effects. In Germany, WACKER's first-quarter sales in 2014 amounted to EUR167.3 million (Q1 2013: EUR159.9 million). This was a year-on-year rise of nearly 5 percent and almost 10 percent up on the final quarter of 2013 (EUR152.2 million). As in the rest of Europe, this sales growth was mainly driven by higher volumes of chemicals. In the Americas, sales of EUR183.1 million reached the level of a year ago (EUR183.7 million). Exchange-rate effects had noticeably slowed the sales trend. Relative to Q4 2013 (EUR173.3 million), sales grew by 6 percent. Sales in the markets combined under "Other Regions" totaled EUR42.7 million from January through March, after EUR41.3 million a year earlier and EUR40.3 million in Q4 2013. Overall, the WACKER Group generated about 86 percent of its first-quarter sales with customers outside Germany (Q1 2013: 85 percent). Investments and Net Cash Flow The WACKER Group invested EUR89.3 million in the first quarter of 2014 (Q1 2013: EUR121.2 million). This decline of some 26 percent was due to project-related factors. Relative to Q4 2013 (EUR153.0 million), investment spending was down by nearly 42 percent. The Group's net cash flow in the first quarter of 2014 was EUR104.5 million, compared with EUR-39.0 million a year ago. The main causes of this increase were the higher net income and reduced investment spending for the period. Investments in the reporting quarter remained focused on completing the new polysilicon site in Charleston, Tennessee (USA), which accounted for over half of the Group's capital expenditures in the quarter under review. At the WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS division, the Group bolstered its pharmaceutical-protein business by acquiring a production plant in Halle, Germany. The acquisition of Scil Proteins Production GmbH - a biotechnology company - had been announced in November 2013 and was completed in early 2014. The start of the year also saw Siltronic acquiring a majority stake in the former joint venture with Samsung for the production of 300?millimeter wafers in Singapore. Siltronic subscribed for new shares in a capital increase and now owns 78 percent of the company, which has been renamed Siltronic Silicon Wafer Pte. Ltd. The company is now a consolidated subsidiary. Having successfully added capacity for vinyl acetate-ethylene copolymer dispersions at the Nanjing site in China, WACKER is now expanding its production facilities for dispersible polymer powders at the same site. A series of individual measures has been planned to eliminate bottlenecks in the production process and consequently enhance productivity. Once these measures are completed, WACKER expects to be able to produce up to 60,000 metric tons of dispersible polymer powder at Nanjing annually. Employees The number of employees at WACKER worldwide rose by 779 in the reporting quarter - an increase of nearly 5 percent. On March 31, 2014, the Group had 16,788 employees (Dec. 31, 2013: 16,009). This increase is attributable to the first-time consolidation of Siltronic Silicon Wafer Pte. Ltd. in the WACKER Group and to the acquisition of Scil Proteins Production GmbH. As of March 31, 2014, WACKER had 12,456 employees in Germany (Dec. 31, 2013: 12,322) and 4,332 at its international sites (Dec. 31, 2013: 3,687). Business Divisions In Q1 2014, WACKER SILICONES achieved total sales of EUR425.3 million (Q1 2013: EUR402.1 million). The figure was close to 6 percent higher than in the comparable year-earlier quarter and a good 5 percent above last year's closing quarter (EUR403.5 million). Thanks to higher volumes, the division more than compensated for unfavorable exchange-rate effects arising from the weaker US dollar. WACKER SILICONES' first-quarter EBITDA came in at EUR49.1 million (Q1 2013: EUR53.7 million). That was almost 9 percent lower than a year ago and nearly 4 percent below the preceding quarter (EUR51.0 million). The corresponding EBITDA margin for the reporting quarter was 11.5 percent, after 13.4 percent in Q1 2013 and 12.6 percent in Q4 2013. Significantly higher methanol prices were the main factor weighing on earnings. Higher year-on-year personnel expenses also played a role. At WACKER POLYMERS, Europe's mild winter and the usual seasonal customer-demand recovery in the construction sector benefited business in the first quarter of 2014. Volumes grew noticeably compared with both Q1 2013 and Q4 2013. The division generated total sales of EUR238.7 million from January through March 2014 (Q1 2013: EUR226.7 million), a rise of over 5 percent. Relative to the preceding quarter (EUR213.2 million), sales were up some 12 percent. Higher prices for raw materials and increased personnel costs somewhat slowed WACKER POLYMERS' earnings in the reporting quarter. The division's January-through-March EBITDA amounted to EUR34.2 million (Q1 2013: EUR35.7 million). That is about 4 percent lower than a year ago, but 51 percent higher than in the preceding quarter (EUR22.6 million). The strong rise compared with Q4 2013 stemmed not only from seasonal effects, but also mainly from the temporary shutdown of a production plant in the fourth quarter for scheduled maintenance. The EBITDA margin in the reporting quarter was 14.3 percent, after 15.7 percent in Q1 2013 and 10.6 percent in Q4 2013. With total sales of EUR40.7 million in Q1 2014, WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS improved its performance slightly compared with both the prior year (EUR40.5 million) and the preceding quarter (EUR39.3 million). The cysteine business grew year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter. Sales of gumbase polymers were also higher than in Q4 2013. Pharmaceutical proteins posted strong percentage growth. Here, sales were lifted by the acquisition of Scil Proteins Production GmbH, consolidated for the first time in Q1 2014. The division's EBITDA amounted to EUR5.4 million from January through March (Q1 2013: EUR6.9 million). This corresponds to an EBITDA margin of 13.3 percent (Q1 2013: 17.0 percent). Exchange-rate effects and higher personnel expenses were among the factors that somewhat dampened earnings. In Q4 2013, WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS had posted EBITDA of EUR5.5 million and generated an EBITDA margin of 14.0 percent. WACKER POLYSILICON benefited from higher volumes and better product prices in the first quarter of 2014. The prospects for strong growth in newly-installed photovoltaic systems around the world are stimulating solar-silicon demand. The division increased its total sales by a good 11 percent to EUR262.0 million compared with the year-earlier figure of EUR235.4 million. Relative to the preceding quarter (EUR249.8 million), sales were up nearly 5 percent. WACKER POLYSILICON more than tripled its EBITDA to EUR180.0 million in Q1 2014 compared with the prior year's figure of EUR52.5 million. This resulted in an EBITDA margin of 68.7 percent after 22.3 percent a year earlier. The main reason for this jump was the amount of EUR114.0 million posted for advance payments retained and damages received (Q1 2013: EUR32.2 million). In operational terms, higher sales volumes and considerably higher production output, as well as better prices than a year ago had a positive effect on earnings. Without the special income earned in the reporting quarter and the comparable prior-year quarter, WACKER POLYSILICON's EBITDA more than tripled year on year. Adjusted for special income, the EBITDA margin in Q1 2014 was 25.2 percent. In Q4 2013, WACKER POLYSILICON had posted EBITDA of EUR70.8 million and an EBITDA margin, adjusted for non-recurring effects, of 25.0 percent. Siltronic achieved total sales of EUR203.8 million in Q1 2014 (Q1 2013: EUR171.2 million), a year-on-year increase of 19 percent. Compared with Q4 2013 (EUR174.6 million), Siltronic's sales grew almost 17 percent. Significantly higher volumes, primarily due to first-time consolidation of Siltronic Silicon Wafer Pte. Ltd. within the WACKER Group, were the reason behind this rise. On the other hand, lower prices and negative exchange-rate effects from the weaker US dollar and yen held back sales growth. Siltronic's measures to reduce its costs and increase productivity largely compensated for persistent price pressure and negative exchange-rate effects. Good plant utilization also had a positive influence. EBITDA totaled EUR15.0 million from January through March 2014 (Q1 2013: EUR0.7 million). In Q4 2013, Siltronic had posted EBITDA of EUR11.5 million. Its EBITDA margin for the quarter under review was 7.4 percent, compared with 0.4 percent in Q1 2013 and 6.6 percent in Q4 2013. Outlook According to the latest forecasts, the global economy will remain on its growth trajectory during 2014 and beyond, increasingly gaining momentum. The political unrest in Ukraine and the Middle East currently poses the biggest risks to further global growth. WACKER SILICONES expects sales to increase in 2014. Growth will be generated mainly in Asia, where the rising standard of living is prompting higher per-capita consumption of silicone products. Additionally, ever increasing quality demands are accelerating the process of substituting simple products with high-end versions that incorporate silicones. EBITDA is projected to be slightly lower than last year, due to the fact that the prior-year figure included a non-recurring effect in the amount of EUR13.7 million (for utilization of a provision for purchase contract obligations in China). WACKER POLYMERS expects sales to climb substantially compared with last year, with the percentage increase probably being higher than the average for the Group. In dispersions, one growth driver remains the shift away from styrene-butadiene toward VAE dispersions in the US and Western Europe carpet sectors. In construction applications, WACKER POLYMERS expects to see further growth in emerging-market economies, especially for interior paints. The division foresees a slight year-on-year increase in EBITDA. WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS is also projecting substantial sales growth above the Group average in 2014. The division aims to step up its biologics business following the takeover of Scil Proteins Production GmbH. EBITDA at WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS is expected to come in at the prior-year level. In WACKER's polysilicon business, both volumes and sales are projected to rise in 2014. The company's assumption is that the photovoltaic market will continue on its growth trajectory. WACKER POLYSILICON anticipates a slight recovery in polysilicon prices for photovoltaic applications. As for EBITDA, the division expects a substantial year-on-year increase, fueled partly by special income posted in the reporting quarter. As announced earlier, WACKER and the Chinese Ministry of Commerce found an amicable solution in mid-March concerning the export of European-produced polysilicon to China. In the agreement, WACKER undertakes not to sell solar silicon produced at its European plants to China below a specific minimum price. China, in turn, will refrain from imposing anti-dumping and anti-subsidy tariffs on polysilicon from WACKER. The agreement has provided the Munich-based chemical company and its Chinese customers with legal and planning certainty. It enables WACKER to continue offering its solar silicon in China at standard market conditions. Siltronic expects sales to grow in 2014. The percentage gain should be higher than the Group's sales increase. This will be fueled primarily by the first-time consolidation of Siltronic Silicon Wafer Pte. Ltd., which is now 78 percent owned by Siltronic. Price pressure is expected to continue and impede sales growth. EBITDA should be considerably higher than in 2013 owing to the inclusion of Siltronic Silicon Wafer in WACKER's consolidated financial statements. Overall, WACKER expects Group sales to increase by a mid-single-digit percentage in 2014. On the EBITDA front, the company's forecast is for substantial year-on year growth of more than 10 percent, which will improve the EBITDA margin. Return on capital employed (ROCE) will edge up relative to last year. Investments will be somewhat above the prior-year level at about EUR550 million. Depreciation will be slightly above that figure at around EUR600 million and thus higher than in the previous year. WACKER is aiming to achieve a balanced net cash flow. Net financial debt will climb by about EUR300 to 400 million. Group net income should be higher than in the previous year. Information for editorial offices: The Q1 2014 report is available for download on the WACKER website (www.wacker.com) under Investor Relations. WACKER's Key Figures Change EURmillion Q1 2014 Q1 2013 in % Sales 1,157.4 1,076.3 7.5 EBITDA1 285.2 164.5 73.4 EBITDA margin2 (%) 24.6 15.3 - EBIT3 133.8 32.2 > 100 EBIT margin2 (%) 11.6 3.0 - Financial result -23.7 -14.6 62.3 Income before taxes 110.1 17.6 > 100 Net income for the period 64.2 5.1 > 100 Earnings per share (EUR) 1.35 0.08 > 100 ROCE?4 (%) 2.6 0.6 - Capital expenditures (incl. financial 89.3 121.2 -26.3 assets) Net cash flow5 104.5 -39.0 n.a. March 31, March 31, Dec. 31, EURmillion 2014 2013 2013 Equity 2,155.5 2,188.4 2,197.1 Financial liabilities 1,448.0 1,193.7 1,416.7 Net financial debt6 899.9 800.1 792.2 Total assets 6,589.2 6,433.6 6,332.4 Employees (number at end of period) 16,788 16,248 16,009 1?EBITDA is EBIT before depreciation and amortization. 2?Margins are calculated based on sales. 3?EBIT is the result from continuing operations for the period before interest and other financial results, and income taxes. 4 ROCE (return on capital employed) sets EBIT in relation to the capital employed for business activities. Capital employed is made up of average noncurrent fixed assets (less noncurrent securities),plus inventories, and trade receivables less trade payables. 5?Sum of cash flow from operating activities (excluding changes in advance payments) and cash flow from long-term investing activities (before securities), including additions due to finance leases. 6?Sum of cash and cash equivalents, noncurrent and current securities, and noncurrent and current financial liabilities. This press release contains forward-looking statements based on assumptions and estimates of WACKER's Executive Board. Although we assume the expectations in these forward-looking statements are realistic, we cannot guarantee they will prove to be correct. The assumptions may harbor risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual figures to differ considerably from the forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause such discrepancies include, among other things, changes in the economic and business environment, variations in exchange and interest rates, the introduction of competing products, lack of acceptance for new products or services, and changes in corporate strategy. WACKER does not plan to update the forward-looking statements, nor does it assume the obligation to do so. For further information, please contact: Wacker Chemie AG Media Relations & Information Christof Bachmair Tel.: +49 89 6279-1830 Fax: +49 89 6279-1239 christof.bachmair@wacker.com End of Corporate News --------------------------------------------------------------------- 05.05.2014 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a company of EQS Group AG. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Language: English Company: Wacker Chemie AG Hanns-Seidel-Platz 4 81737 München Germany Phone: 0049-89-6279-1633 Fax: 0049-89-6279-2933 E-mail: investor.relations@wacker.com Internet: www.wacker.com ISIN: DE000WCH8881 WKN: WCH888 Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Hannover, München, Stuttgart End of News DGAP News-Service --------------------------------------------------------------------- 266195 05.05.2014 |
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