DGAP-News: Gerry Weber International AG / Key word(s): AGM/EGM General Meeting of GERRY WEBER International AG 24.05.2011 / 13:20 --------------------------------------------------------------------- PRESS RELEASE - Record dividend of EUR 1.10 per share endorsed by Annual General Meeting - All items on the agenda endorsed by a large majority - Sales and earnings targets for financial year 2010/2011 confirmed (Halle/Westphalia, 24 May 2011) Shareholders attending today's Annual General Meeting of GERRY WEBER International AG endorsed the seven motions on the agenda with a large majority. The most important motions included the dividend increase to EUR 1.10 per voting share, which is 30 percent or EUR 0.25 more than in the previous year, making this the highest dividend ever paid in the company's history. The total payout amounts to EUR 25.2 million. The remaining annual profit amounting to EUR 14.5 million will be carried forward to new account. The Group's net profit grew by 25.6 percent in the past financial year and the first quarter of the current financial year saw a continuation of this excellent profit trend. Another motion on the agenda concerned a capital increase from company funds through the conversion of a part of the retained earnings into share capital. The capital increase will be implemented by issuing 22,952,980 no-par-value shares to existing shareholders on a 1:1 basis. This move is designed to make the shares even more attractive investments without diluting the equity. In his speech to the Annual General Meeting, Managing Board Chairman Gerhard Weber laid out the reasons for the excellent performance put in by GERRY WEBER International AG. 'The excellent performance of our three brands was preceded by a consistent modernisation process. We have clearly rejuvenated our collections over the past years and now present a clear and consistent signature and even more sophisticated designs across all three brands. Going forward, we will further sharpen our focus on the high value of our fashion to underline our ambition of forming a bridge to the premium segment,' Gerhard Weber told shareholders. He also pointed out that the company's own Retail business would remain the main growth driver. 'As a vertically integrated systems supplier, we seize market opportunities flexibly as they arise. We meanwhile cover the full value chain from product development to our own stores. Building on our vertical integration strategy, we have achieved a unique standing in the marketplace and have clearly outdistanced our industry peers in terms of growth over the past years,' said the Chairman of the Managing Board. Gerhard Weber confirmed that the company anticipates sales of EUR 700 million for the current financial year, an increase by more than 10 percent on the previous year. The EBIT margin is to increase to more than 14 percent. The company projects double-digit sales growth also for the next two to three years, with the EBIT margin likely to rise to 15 percent. The Chairman of the Managing Board concluded his speech to shareholders by saying: 'In the past fiscal year, we have adapted our brand policy even more closely to consumers' requirements. We have modernised our collections prudently and continued to raise the level of quality. At the same time, the streamlining of our collections has enabled a clearly faster implementation of new fashion trends. We continue to expand the lead over our competitors and are ideally positioned to reach our growth targets.' Some 1,100 shareholders and shareholder representatives attended the annual general meeting, which traditionally takes place at the GERRY WEBER Event & Convention Center during the week before the start of the GERRY WEBER OPEN lawn tennis tournament. Investor Relations contact: Jörg Stüber Tel.: +49 (0) 52 01 185 - 0 E-Mail: j.stueber@gerryweber.de www.gerryweber-ag.de End of Corporate News --------------------------------------------------------------------- 24.05.2011 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a company of EquityStory AG. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. DGAP's 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: Gerry Weber International AG NeulehenstraÃe 8 33790 Halle/Westfalen Deutschland Phone: +49 (0)5201 185-0 Fax: +49 (0)5201 5857 E-mail: h.kley@gerryweber.de Internet: www.gerryweber-ag.de ISIN: DE0003304101 WKN: 330410 Listed: Regulierter Markt in Düsseldorf, Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in Berlin, Stuttgart End of News DGAP News-Service --------------------------------------------------------------------- 125955 24.05.2011
DGAP-News: General Meeting of GERRY WEBER International AG
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