Corporate | 5 February 2015 08:00
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VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie AG / Key word(s): Half Year Results
VERBIO AG continues earnings growth in second quarter 2014/2015 and raises forecasts – EBITDA up 20 percent to EUR 25.9 million in first half-year 2014/2015 – Production of biodiesel and bioethanol increased by 11 percent – First biomethane from 100% straw fed in to the network – Prospects for dividend payments Leipzig, February 5, 2015 – VERBIO AG earnings growth continued in the first half of the 2014/2015 financial year. The Group’s revenues for the period fell by 27 percent to EUR 307.8 million (1 HY 2013/2014: EUR 420.2 million) compared to the same period in the previous year. The fall was primarily a result of the lower price levels for biofuels and the lower level of merchandise revenues from fossil and biofuel trading. Earnings before interest, taxes, and depreciation (EBITDA) amounted to EUR 25.9 million, EUR 4.4 million (20 percent) more than in the comparative period in the previous year (1 HY 2013/2014: EUR 21.5 million). The Group’s earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) increased by 40 percent, totaling EUR 14.7 million (1 HY 2013/2014: EUR 10.5 million). The Group’s net result before taxes (EBT) totals EUR 13.0 million (1 HY 2013/2014: EUR 8.8 million), and the net result for the period is EUR 11.8 million (1 HY 2013/2014: EUR 7.9 million). Based on the result for the period, earnings per share (basic and diluted) is EUR 0.19 (1 HY 2013/2014: EUR 0.13). The primary drivers of earnings growth were the increased sales quantities, resulting from higher production capacity usage, as well as effective efficiency improvements in the Bioethanol segment. Production of biodiesel and bioethanol in the period from July 1, 2014 to December 31, 2014 was 343,248 tons, an increase of 11 percent over the 309,417 tons produced in the same period of the previous year. In addition, a total of 227.5 GWh of biomethane was produced in the first half of the 2014/2015 financial year (1 HY 2013/2014: 132.5 GWh), an increase of 72 percent compared to the equivalent period of the previous year. At the Schwedt site, which is supported under the European NER 300 subsidy project, the plant expansion designed to produce biomethane from 100 percent straw achieved its first milestones according to plan.
Development of the Biodiesel, Bioethanol and Other segments
The Bioethanol segment generated sales revenues of EUR 108.1 million in the reporting period covering the first half-year 2014/2015 (1 HY 2013/2014: EUR 151.0 million). With 125,294 tons of bioethanol (1 HY 2013/2014: 99,895 tons) and 227.5 GWh biomethane (1 HY 2013/2014: 132.5 GWh) production in this area also increased, by 25 percent and 72 percent, respectively. The Bioethanol segment contributed EUR 11.5 million EBITDA (1 HY 2013/2014: EUR 8.8 million) and EUR 3.4 million EBIT (1 HY 2013/2014: EUR 1.1 million) to the Group’s results. Revenues generated in the Other segment totaled EUR 7.5 million in the first six months of the 2014/2015 financial year (1 HY 2013/2014: EUR 18.5 million), primarily from transport and logistics services. The segment result amounted to EUR 0.3 million (1 HY 2013/2014: EUR -1.3 million). Increase in earnings forecasts and possible dividend payment for the 2014/2015 financial year The Management Board currently expects an EBITDA in the range of between EUR 36 million and EUR 44 million and EBIT in the range between EUR 14 million to EUR 22 million for the full 2014/2015 financial year. In its most recent previous forecast the Company had expected EBITDA of between EUR 25 million and EUR 35 million and EBIT of between EUR 3 million and EUR 13 million. Provided current business trends continue, and provided that all statutory conditions are fulfilled, the payment of a dividend for the 2014/2015 financial year in a range of between five and ten cents per share is considered possible. Detailed information on business developments in the first half-year 2014/2015 is provided in the half-year report 2014/2015. The report can be viewed from 9 a.m. on Verbio’s website, www.verbio.de .
Information about VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie AG (VERBIO)
Important notice
Contact: VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie AG Augustusplatz 9 04109 Leipzig Olaf Tröber (IR) Ulrike Kurze (PR) Phone: +49(0)341/308530-294 Fax: +49(0)341/308530-998 Email: ir@verbio.de/pr@verbio.de 2015-02-05 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP – a service of EQS Group AG. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. The DGAP Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases. Media archive at www.dgap-medientreff.de and www.dgap.de |
| Language: | English | |
| Company: | VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergie AG | |
| Ritterstraße 23 (Oelßners Hof) | ||
| 04109 Leipzig | ||
| Germany | ||
| Phone: | +49 (0)341 308530-0 | |
| Fax: | +49 (0)341 308530-998 | |
| E-mail: | ir@verbio.de | |
| Internet: | www.verbio.de | |
| ISIN: | DE000A0JL9W6 | |
| WKN: | A0JL9W | |
| Listed: | Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in Berlin, Düsseldorf, München, Stuttgart | |
| End of News | DGAP News-Service |
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