Corporate | 5 August 2009 07:10
STRATEC Biomedical Systems AG / Half Year Results/Interim Report Release of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a company of EquityStory AG. The issuer / publisher is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- STRATEC - Strong half-year figures affirm growth forecast for 2009 - Sales increased by 23.7% to Euro 36.6 million in 1st half of 2009 - Consolidated net income up +27% to Euro 4.9 million in first six months - EBIT margin at 17.1% in first six months (2nd quarter: 17.8%) - Development projects on schedule - Further rise in personnel totals due to development work Birkenfeld, August 5, 2009 STRATEC Biomedical Systems AG today released its figures for the period January 1, 2009 to June 30, 2009 upon publication of its interim report as of June 30, 2009.Key Figures (EUR 000s) 01/01/-06/30/2009 01/01/-06/30/2008 Change Sales 36,552 29,548 + 23.7% Overall performance 40,355 32,102 + 25.7% EBITDA 7,526 6,016 + 25.1% EBIT 6,231 4,862 + 28.2% Consolidated net income 4,894 3,849 + 27.1% Earnings per share (EUR) 0.43 0.34 + 26.5% EBIT margin (%) 17.1 16.5The second quarter of 2009 Financial performance - As forecast, and as far as our company is concerned, developments in the field of in-vitro diagnostics have remained virtually unaffected by the current economic climate and the global financial crisis. Indeed, sales into all of our major customers continue to develop positively. At Euro 36.6 million in the first half of 2009 (previous year: Euro 29.5 million), sales grew by 23.7%, and thus within our forecast range, which foresees sales growth of between 20% and 30% for the 2009 financial year. With EBIT of Euro 6.2 million (previous year: Euro 4.9 million), we achieved an EBIT margin of 17.1% (previous year: 16.5%). In the period from April 1, 2009 to June 30, 2009, we increased our sales by 21.3% to Euro 19.8 million (Q2 2008: Euro 16.3 million). Over the same period, we generated EBIT of Euro 3.5 million (Q2 2008: Euro 2.8 million), equivalent to growth of 27.5%. The EBIT margin for the second quarter of 2009 amounted to 17.8% (previous year: 16.9%). Project development - We are pleased to report very positive news on the development status of our new systems. Prototypes and validation units have been and continue to be delivered for all new systems whose market launches are scheduled by our customers for the coming quarters. In some cases, customers have already granted approval for the respective systems, and we are pressing ahead with serial production in all cases. In view of this, we expect to be able to significantly increase the number of analyzer systems delivered from the third quarter of 2009 onwards. Moreover, sales of one analyzer system whose turnover was marked by weak developments in the past year and which had already recovered notably in the first quarter of 2009 were significantly higher again in the second quarter of 2009. Indeed, the binding order placed for deliveries of this analyzer system by the end of this year enables sales volumes with the corresponding customer to be extrapolated to a level above the strong performance seen in 2007. What's more, based on market developments and various measures taken by the respective customer, we also expect to see a further increase in purchasing volumes. Other highlights - The integration of Invitek Gesellschaft für Biotechnik & Biodesign mbH, a company acquired in April 2009 which specializes in particular in purifying nucleic acids for OEM customers, is progressing to schedule. Alongside technology synergies, the first cross-selling discussions are already underway with potential new customers and existing STRATEC customers interested in extending their systems to include the services offered by Invitek. Due to this acquisition, and in particular because of the significant expansion of our development departments, the Group's total workforce grew to 325 as of June 30, 2009 (previous year: 267). Outlook - In view of the scheduled progress made on our current development projects, and given the call-up orders and forecasts received from our customers to date, we continue to expect our business to develop very positively in the current year. Specifically, all business indicators affirm the validity of the guidance issued for 2009. Accordingly, we continue to expect the STRATEC Group to achieve sales growth of between 20% and 30% in 2009, with an EBIT margin of between 18.5% and 19.5%. Further details can be found in our interim report as of June 30, 2009, which has been published under www.stratec-biomedical.de > IR News > Financial Reports. About STRATEC STRATEC Biomedical Systems AG (http://www.stratec-biomedical.de) designs and manufactures fully automated systems for its partners in the fields of clinical diagnostics and biotechnology. These partners market such systems, in general together with their own reagents, to laboratories, blood banks and research institutes around the world. The company develops its products on the basis of its own patented technologies. Shares in the company (ISIN: DE0007289001) are traded in the Prime Standard segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. The STRATEC Group consists of the publicly listed parent company STRATEC Biomedical Systems AG and of subsidiaries and second-tier subsidiaries in Germany, the USA, the UK, Switzerland and Romania. Further information can be obtained from: STRATEC Biomedical Systems AG André Loy, Investor Relations Gewerbestr. 37, 75217 Birkenfeld Germany Phone: +49 7082 7916 190 Fax: +49 7082 7916 999 Email: ir@stratec-biomedical.de 05.08.2009 Financial News transmitted by DGAP ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Language: English Issuer: STRATEC Biomedical Systems AG Gewerbestraße 37 75217 Birkenfeld Deutschland Phone: +49 (0)7082 7916 0 Fax: +49 (0)7082 7916 999 E-mail: info@stratec-biomedical.de Internet: www.stratec-biomedical.de ISIN: DE0007289001 WKN: 728900 Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in München, Düsseldorf, Stuttgart End of News DGAP News-Service ---------------------------------------------------------------------------