27.04.2016
KION GROUP AG DE000KGX8881
DGAP-News: KION Group continues growth path in the first quarter of 2016 (news with additional features)
DGAP-News: KION GROUP AG / Key word(s): Quarter Results
KION Group continues growth path in the first quarter of 2016 (news with
additional features)
27.04.2016 / 06:59
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
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- Order intake improves by around 4 per cent to around EUR1.297 billion in
the first quarter
- Revenue rises by around 5 per cent to EUR1.221 billion
- EBIT[1] grows by almost 6 per cent to EUR98.6 million
- EBIT[1] margin advances to 8.1 per cent
- Outlook for the full year confirmed
Wiesbaden, 27 April 2016 - The KION Group maintained its prior-year growth
trajectory in the first quarter of 2016. Mainly thanks to sustained demand
in the core market of western Europe, the total value of order intake grew
by 3.9 per cent year on year to reach EUR1.297 billion in the first three
months. The order book stood at EUR921.5 million, which was 6.6 per cent
higher than at the end of 2015. The KION Group's revenue advanced by 4.8
per cent to EUR1.221 billion. Earnings before interest and tax (EBIT[1])
rose by 5.6 per cent to EUR98.6 million. This enabled the KION Group to
report a year-on-year improvement in its EBIT[1] margin, which rose to 8.1
per cent for the first three months of 2016.
The KION Group, one of the two leading suppliers of forklift trucks,
warehouse technology and associated services, saw its orders advance by 4.9
per cent to approximately 43,600 trucks in the first quarter 2016. Hence,
the Company again outperformed the growth rate of the global market. The
Group's orders in the core market of western Europe were up by 6.2 per cent
compared with the first quarter of last year. In China, the world's largest
single market, 2.5 per cent more trucks were ordered from KION Group brands
than in the corresponding period of 2015.
"We are very satisfied with how the year has begun," said Gordon Riske,
Chief Executive Officer of the KION Group. "Our industry is currently
benefiting from the trend towards warehouse trucks and electric forklift
trucks, which is driven in part by the growth in e-commerce. As global
market leader in the electric forklift truck segment, we are ideally
positioned to capitalise on this development and on the highly attractive
market for automation and warehouse system solutions."
In the first three months of the year, approximately 293.500 new trucks
were ordered worldwide, a year-on-year rise of around 3.7 per cent. The
increase in western Europe during the same period was 12.5 per cent. The
Chinese market was up by 6.8 per cent year on year in the first three
months of 2016, following decreases in the four previous quarters. This
growth in China was driven by pre-buy effects due to the tightening of
emissions regulations for internal combustion forklift trucks. Worldwide,
demand for warehouse trucks saw particularly robust growth. There was also
a strong increase in demand for electric forklift trucks, whereas orders
for internal combustion forklift trucks continued to go down.
Business performance of the KION Group in detail
Measured in terms of units, order intake for the first quarter of 2016
totalled approximately 43,600 trucks, a year-on-year improvement of 4.9 per
cent. The strongest growth was in electric forklift trucks, followed by
warehouse trucks. The number of internal combustion forklift trucks ordered
was down on the same period of last year, which can be attributed to the
shift in demand towards electric forklift trucks.
In the first three months of the year, the value of order intake increased
by 3.9 per cent to EUR1.297 billion, despite negative currency effects of
EUR21.6 million stemming from the appreciation of the euro. The order book
advanced to EUR921.5 million, an increase of 6.6 per cent on the value at
the end of 2015 of EUR864.0 million.
At EUR1.221 billion, consolidated revenue was up by 4.8 per cent compared
with the first quarter of 2015 despite negative currency effects of around
EUR21.1 million.
Earnings before interest and tax (EBIT[1]) rose by 5.6 per cent to EUR98.6
million in the first three months of 2016. The EBIT[1] margin improved from
8.0 per cent in the first quarter of last year to 8.1 per cent in the
reporting period.
Net income fell by 21.0 per cent year on year to EUR33.0 million in the
first quarter due to expenses of EUR25.7 million for renewing and
optimising the KION Group's financing structure. However, lower interest
expenses will have a substantial positive effect in the quarters to come.
Earnings per share for the first three months of 2016 amounted to EUR0.33.
At minus EUR20.4 million, free cash flow was on a par with the prior-year
period (Q1 2015: minus EUR19.6 million) despite the purchase of US systems
integrator Retrotech.
Total expenditure on research and development (R&D) came to EUR32.8 million
in the first quarter (Q1 2015: EUR30.7 million).
The number of employees at 31 March 2016 was 23,761, which was up by 1.1
per cent compared with the end of 2015.
Improved assessment from rating agency
In April, rating agency Moody's raised its credit rating for the KION Group
from Ba2 with a positive outlook to Ba1 with a stable outlook. The reason
given by the agency was the ongoing deleveraging, supported by a continued
strong operating performance last year, which is expected to be sustained
in 2016.
Purchase of Retrotech completed
The KION Group and its automation brand Egemin Automation completed the
acquisition of Retrotech Inc., an established US systems integrator of
warehouse and distribution solutions, on 1 March 2016. This enables the
KION Group to further strengthen its automated warehouse systems expertise
in North America. An agreement on the sale of the company at a value of
around US$ 40 million was signed in February 2016.
Cutting-edge KION plant officially opens in Stříbro, Czech Republic
In February, the KION Group officially opened its state-of-the-art plant
near the Czech town of Stříbro close to Plzeň. The Group built the new
plant as a smart factory featuring digitally connected systems and began
manufacturing reach trucks there at the start of January 2016. Around 150
people are working at the site currently. The KION Group has spent around
EUR12 million in investments on fitting out the building, which has an area
of approximately 24,000 square metres.
Outlook
The KION Group confirms the outlook for 2016 provided in the 2015 group
annual report. Accordingly, the order intake is expected to be between
EUR5.350 billion and EUR5.500 billion. The target figure for consolidated
revenue is in the range of EUR5.200 billion to EUR5.350 billion. The
targeted range for adjusted EBIT is EUR510 million to EUR535 million. The
adjusted EBIT margin is predicted to increase above the margin of 9.5 per
cent that was generated in 2015. Free cash flow is expected to be in a
range between EUR280 million and EUR320 million after taking account of the
acquisition of Retrotech Inc.
[1] EBIT adjusted for KION acquisition items and non-recurring items.
Website: kiongroup.com/mediasite
Twitter: @kion_group
The Company
The KION Group - comprising the seven brands of Linde, STILL, Fenwick, OM
STILL, Baoli, Voltas and Egemin Automation - is the largest manufacturer of
industrial trucks in western and eastern Europe, the global number two in
the industry and the leading non-domestic supplier in China. The Linde and
STILL brands serve the premium segment worldwide. Fenwick is the largest
supplier of material handling products in France, while OM STILL is a
market leader in Italy. The Baoli brand focuses on the economy segment, and
Voltas is a leading provider of industrial trucks in India. Egemin
Automation is a leading international logistics automation specialist.
The KION Group is present in more than 100 countries and, in 2015, employed
around 23,500 people and generated revenue of around EUR5.1 billion. KION
GROUP AG is listed on Deutsche Börse's Frankfurt Stock Exchange, the MDAX
(the German stock index for medium-sized companies) and the STOXX Europe
600 index, which comprises the 600 largest companies in Europe.
Disclaimer
This document and the information contained herein are for information
purposes only and do not constitute a prospectus or an offer to sell or a
solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in the United States or in
any other jurisdiction.
This release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to
various risks and uncertainties. Future results could differ materially
from those described in these forward-looking statements due to certain
factors, e.g. changes in business, economic and competitive conditions,
regulatory reforms, results of technical studies, foreign exchange rate
fluctuations, uncertainties in litigation or investigative proceedings, and
the availability of financing. We do not undertake any responsibility to
update the forward-looking statements in this release.
Further information for the media
Michael Hauger
Head of Corporate Communications
Tel.: +49 (0)611 770 655
[email protected]
Frank Brandmaier
Head of Corporate Media Relations
Tel.: +49 (0)611 770 752
[email protected]
Further information for investors
Frank Herzog
Head of Corporate Finance
Tel.: +49 (0)611 770 303
[email protected]
Dr Karoline Jung-Senssfelder
Head of Investor Relations and M&A
Tel.: +49 (0)611 770 450
[email protected]
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Additional features:
Document: http://n.eqs.com/c/fncls.ssp?u=OYBVMWPYUO
Document title: Download press release as PDF
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27.04.2016 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
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Language: English
Company: KION GROUP AG
Abraham-Lincoln-Str. 21
65189 Wiesbaden
Germany
Phone: +49 (0)611 770-0
Fax: +49 (0)611 770-690
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet: www.kiongroup.com
ISIN: DE000KGX8881
WKN: KGX888
Indices: MDAX
Listed: Regulated Market in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Regulated
Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Hanover,
Munich, Stuttgart; Terminbörse EUREX
End of News DGAP News Service
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