STRATEC Biomedical Systems AG / Final Results/Preliminary Results
04.03.2008
Release of an Ad hoc announcement according to § 15 WpHG, transmitted by DGAP - a company of EquityStory AG.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
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STRATEC posts further record earnings for 2007 financial year
- Consolidated net income rises by 28.6% to Euro 9.956 million
- Sales of Euro 67.527 million match high level reported in previous year
- Earnings before taxes (EBT) reach Euro 14.463 million
Birkenfeld, March 4, 2008
The Board of Management of STRATEC Biomedical Systems AG, which is listed
in the Prime Standard, hereby announces the preliminary unaudited
consolidated figures of the STRATEC Group for the 2007 financial year
pursuant to IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) and in
accordance with Section 15 of the German Securities Trading Act (WpHG).<pre>
Key Figures (EUR 000s) 2007 2006 Change
Sales 67,527 68,414 - 1.3%
Gross performance 69,680 69,233 + 0.7%
EBITDA 16,514 12,655 + 30.5%
EBIT 14,244 10,839 + 31.4%
EBT 14,463 10,793 + 34.0%
Consolidated net income 9,956 7,741 + 28.6%
Earnings per share (EUR) 0.88 0.70 + 25.7%</pre>
Including personnel assigned by an employment agency, the STRATEC Group had
a total of 270 employees as of December 31, 2007 (previous year: 246).
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Information and Explaination of the Issuer to this News:
With these preliminary unaudited consolidated figures for the 2007
financial year, namely sales of Euro 67.5 million and earnings before taxes
(EBT) of Euro 14.5 million, STRATEC has met its own expectations. The
company most recently expected to be able to achieve sales at around the
high level reported for the previous year (2006: Euro 68.4m) and earnings
before taxes (EBT) of at least Euro 14.0 million (2006: Euro 10.8m).
The calculation of the key figure 'earnings per share' for the 2007
financial year is based on a weighted number of shares amounting to
11,324,028.
Efficiency enhancements, the ongoing high level of turnover with
consumables and expendable parts, as well as continued improvements in the
product portfolios in terms of margins, enabled the STRATEC Group to
achieve disproportionate earnings growth compared with sales in the 2007
financial year.
Revenues not affected by output volumes (sales not incurring costs) have
contributed around Euro 0.5 million to the consolidated net income for the
2007 financial year as a whole. This has positively influenced the margin.
The reduction in the effective tax rate at STRATEC AG from the 2008
financial year onwards compared with the 2007 financial year arising in
connection with the 2008 corporate taxation reform led to deferred tax
income of Euro 96k resulting from the depreciation of deferred tax
liabilities.
The performance of the company in the second half of the 2007 financial
year was affected by the marketing launch of a serial analyzer system newly
developed for one of our customers, which had initially been postponed and
was then launched at the end of the fourth quarter of 2007, and by the
decision taken by a further STRATEC customer to implement the planned
market launch of the extension of its reagents portfolio only in part.
The reagents portfolio referred to above has now been partly completed. The
ramp-up phase is expected to be completed by the end of the second quarter
of 2008.
Notes on the forecast for 2008 onwards (already published and still valid):
With sales still expected to rise to between Euro 78 million and Euro 82
million in the 2008 financial year, the company expects to achieve earnings
before taxes (EBT) in a range of Euro 16.2 million to Euro 18.2 million.
Sales continue to be related to serial analyzer systems originally
developed for Bayer Diagnostics and now marketed by Siemens Healthcare
Diagnostics. The business consolidation following the integration of Dade
Behring into Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics is still impacting on
decision-making processes. We have assessed the information at our disposal
and factored this into our budgets.
For subsequent years from 2009, the company also expects to generate
average annual growth rates (CAGR) of more than 11% in the case of sales
and of more than 18% in terms of earnings before taxes (EBT), thus
achieving a level of growth more than double that expected for the overall
market.
The products currently in pre-development and development phases amongst
others targeting 'molecular diagnostics', the fastest-growing market within
diagnostics the partnerships established with our customers in this
respect and the overall youth of our product portfolio show that STRATECs
future growth can also be expected to benefit disproportionately from the
outsourcing requirements and growth of the overall market. By maintaining
its high level of investment in development work, STRATEC is securing its
growth, innovative leadership and competitive advantage.
The recently announced cooperation with QIAGEN Gaithersburg represents the
first of the cooperation agreements expected to be concluded with partners
in the fields of clinical diagnostics and biotechnology in 2008.
Important dates in 2008:
The detailed figures for the 2007 financial year will be explained in the
Annual Press Conference Call on April 9, 2008.
The 2007 Annual Report will be available for downloading from our company
internet site from April 9, 2008.
Among other items, the meeting of the Board of Management and the
Supervisory Board held to approve the financial statements, which is
expected to take place on March 31, 2008, will discuss the distribution of
a dividend.
Our Annual General Meeting for the 2007 financial year will be held in
Pforzheim on May 21, 2008.
About STRATEC
STRATEC Biomedical Systems AG (http://www.stratec-biomedical.de) designs
and manufactures fully automated analyzer 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 and on other exchanges.
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 Rumania.
Further information can be obtained from:
STRATEC Biomedical Systems AG
André Loy, Investor Relations
Gewerbestrasse 37
75217 Birkenfeld
Germany
Tel: +49 (0)7082 7916 190
Fax: +49 (0)7082 7916 999
E-mail: ir@stratec-biomedical.de
DGAP 04.03.2008
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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 Stuttgart, München, Düsseldorf
End of News DGAP News-Service
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DGAP-Adhoc: STRATEC posts further record earnings for 2007 financial year
| Source: EQS Group AG