Corporate | 15 March 2007 10:16
A.S. Création Tapeten AG / Final Results
Release of a Corporate-announcement, transmitted by DGAP - a company of
EquityStory AG.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
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Sales revenues of A.S. Création reach highest level in the history of the
company
In the fiscal year 2006, A.S. Création Tapeten AG, Europe’s leading
wallpaper manufacturer achieved the highest sales in the history of the
company. This was announced by the Managing Board at today’s annual
accounts press conference. At € 152.4 million, Group sales were up 4.9% on
the previous year’s € 145.3 million. Both the Wallpaper Division and the
Furnishing Fabrics Division contributed to this sales growth.
The higher sales are the result of the expansion of the company’s
international business, while domestic sales were below the previous year’s
level. Accordingly, foreign markets accounted for a higher share of the
Group’s total sales. While 58.5% of the previous year‘s gross sales were
generated abroad, this figure rose to 63.1% in 2006. Growth was mainly
driven by the Eastern European markets.
Despite the rise in sales, A.S. Création was unable to increase earnings
before tax in the fiscal year 2006. At € 12.7 million, they were slightly
below the previous year’s € 13.0 million. On the one hand, this was due to
the increase in commodity and energy prices in 2006. On the other hand,
higher freight and waste disposal costs also weighed on the result. The
company’s product policy of expanding the percentage of higher-value
products in the wallpaper range as well as higher staff productivity failed
to offset the increase in these expenditure items. As a result, the pre-tax
profit margin declined from 8.9% in the previous year to 8.3% in 2006.
While this is still a relatively high level, the Managing Board considers
this decline in the margin to be unsatisfactory.
The development of net profit for the year was influenced by a special
effect in 2006. Although earnings before tax were down on the previous
year, net profit for the year 2006, at € 10.2 million, clearly exceeded the
previous year’s € 7.7 million. This special effect is attributable to the
December 2006 amendment of the tax regulations governing the reimbursement
of the corporate income tax credit. As a result of this amendment, the
corporate income tax credit had to be capitalised in the past fiscal year
although it will be reimbursed only from 2008 to 2017. Accordingly, A.S.
Création’s net profit for the year 2006 increased by € 1.9 million.
Adjusted for this special effect, net profit amounted to € 8.3 million,
which was in line with the company’s expectations.
Although the special effect was reflected in the profit of the fiscal year
but was non-cash in nature, the Managing Board and the Supervisory Board
intend to maintain their dividend policy with a view to ensuring the
continuity and reliability of A.S. Création’s dividend policy. Accordingly,
payment of a dividend of € 1.65 per share (2005: € 1.25) will be proposed
to the General Meeting of Shareholders. Based on earnings per share of €
3.65, this represents a payout ratio of 45.2% (2005: 45.0%). In accordance
with the profit components described above, the dividend for the fiscal
year 2006 comprises an amount of € 1.33 from operations and an amount of €
0.32 that results from the non-recurrent tax effect.
The Managing Board of A.S. Création is planning a comprehensive capital
expenditure programme for 2007 and 2008 in order to further expand the
company’s leading position in the European wallpaper market. These
expansion investments will focus on the production and logistics
capacities. Overall, the Group projects sales of approx. € 160 million and
a net profit of between € 8.7 million and € 9.2 million for the fiscal year
2007.
The Group’s key figures for 2006 at a glance:
2006 2005 Change
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Sales EUR '000 152,373 145,320 4.9%
Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT)EUR '000 13,747 14,842 -7.4%
Earnings before income taxes EUR '000 12,672 12,978 -2.4%
Net profit EUR '000 10,174 7,744 31.4%
Earnings per share EUR/share 3.65 2.78 31.3%
Cash-flow EUR '000 16,199 16,033 1.0%
Capital expenditures EUR '000 7,443 8,919 -16.5%
Depreciation EUR '000 7,985 8,168 -2.2%
Number of employees (average) 633 635 -0.3%
Gummersbach, March 15, 2007
A.S. Création Tapeten AG
The Managing Board
Inquiries:
Maik Krämer, Director of Finance, phone +49-(0)22 61/542-387, fax +49-(0)22
61/542-304,
e-mail: m.kraemer@as-creation.de
The full annual report is available at:
www.as-creation.de
or from:
A.S. Création Tapeten AG, Mrs. Börngen, Südstr. 47, D - 51645 Gummersbach,
phone +49-(0)22 61/542-350,
e-mail: investor@as-creation.de
DGAP 15.03.2007
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Language: English
Issuer: A.S. Création Tapeten AG
Südstraße 47
51645 Gummersbach Deutschland
Phone: +49 (0)22 615 42-0
Fax: +49 (0)22 6154 2-3 04
E-mail: investor@as-creation.de
www: investor@as-creation.de
ISIN: DE0005079909
WKN: 507990
Indices:
Listed: Amtlicher Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in
Berlin-Bremen, Stuttgart, München, Hamburg, Düsseldorf
End of News DGAP News-Service
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