Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic - KSB retracts outlook for the 2020 financial year

FRANKENTHAL: The restrictions ordered by national governments due to the COVID-19 pandemic are resulting in substantial adjustments, interruptions and the closing of facilities and sites at several KSB companies as well as at customers and suppliers. This will inevitably entail tangible impacts on the KSB Group's business development.

Due to the uncertainty about the duration of the restrictions and in light of the current difficulty in estimating further potential consequences for production, the supply chain and demand, the Management of KSB SE & Co. KGaA has decided to retract the outlook for the 2020 financial year published in the 2019 Annual Report. As the developments which are being caused by the pandemic are highly dynamic, at the present time it is not possible to say when a new outlook can be issued.

The situation described is already having an impact on the financial results in the first quarter of the 2020 financial year. Based on preliminary figures, compared with the first quarter of last year KSB is expecting a decline in sales revenue of 3.2 % to € 518 million and a decrease in order intake of 12.0 % to € 588 million.

At the end of February 2020, KSB had cash and cash equivalents amounting to € 316 million and additional undrawn credit lines of over € 300 million. As these are not subject to compliance with certain financial key indicators or to any ranking by rating companies, they therefore secure our financial stability and flexibility.

KSB will publish the interim report on the first quarter of 2020 on 30 April 2020.