Elekta presents priorities for continued revenue growth and profitability

Elekta presents priorities for continued revenue growth and
profitability

 

Press Release
Stockholm, Sweden, June 9, 2011

Elekta will focus on areas that will continue to drive growth and
profitability. This was the main message from Tomas Puusepp, President
and CEO and Håkan Bergström, CFO at today's Capital Markets Day.

Following the release of Elekta's year-end report for 2010/11, Tomas
Puusepp described how Elekta is well positioned to drive growth in
several areas. “Our first priority is to accelerate growth from
delivering systems to solutions.” He says Elekta can increase market
share in established markets through extended solutions while investing
in emerging markets using prudent financial solutions. Puusepp also said
that strategic acquisitions could support the growth of the company.

“Our second priority is to increase margins and establish
industry-leading efficiency. This includes improving G&A efficiency and
driving higher margins by continuing to increase our sales in services
and software,” he said.

Puusepp revealed Elekta's strategy for sustainable profitable growth for
the coming years, in line with Elekta's long term financial guidance.
This includes that Elekta in year 2015 will reach an accelerated growth
of 13-15% and improved EBIT growth. Earnings per share is expected to
have improved by more than 60%.

He compared established markets with emerging markets, saying: “We
estimate about 600 projects per year in established markets,
characterized by replacements and life cycle sales. These should result
in growth of 5-8%. Emerging markets are often untapped and offer
potential for high volume business. Here we expect about 300 projects
per year and growth of 10-20%.”

Håkan Bergström described the market outlook for most regions as either
stable or strong; the only exception being some uncertainty of
government healthcare spending in Portugal, Ireland, Greece, Spain
(PIGS) and in the UK.

“We see strong growth prospects for South America and strong demand in
emerging markets. To help support expansion in emerging markets Elekta
is considering a wide range of financial solutions including loans
support, unsecured deferred payments, leasing, pay-per-use and risk
sharing.”

Elekta's backlog increased 14% in fixed currencies in 2010-2011, and
Bergström reported continued good visibility of sales and earnings. He
said there is a healthy backlog development for Leksell Gamma Knife® and
linear accelerators (linacs).

“Net sales are expected to grow by more than 10% in local currency,”
Bergström said. “And our operating profit in SEK is expected to increase
by more than 10%.”

Elekta's regional heads also spoke at the Capital Markets Day. Jay Hoey,
Executive Vice President, Region North America, said the region would
continue to improve its service excellence and software leadership. “As
for challenges, we see healthcare reforms and regulatory involvement as
well as pressures on reimbursements. On the other hand, new product
launches, aging equipment and an aging population are all stimulating
the medical device industry.”

Ian Alexander, Executive Vice President, Region Asia Pacific, said that
China and India would lead the orders and sales in his region with
expected growth of 15-20% and 20-25% respectively. He said that although
the full impact of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan is not yet known,
there is a strong underlying market demand in other parts of the region.
“The market will continue to develop rapidly as it is characterized by
an aging population, increased cancer incidence, improving diagnostics
and a low installed base in developing countries.”

Region Europe, Africa, Latin America, Middle East (AFLAME) sees the
strongest growth potential in Russia, Turkey and Brazil. Olof Sandén,
the Executive Vice President for the region, said these countries are
characterized by low linac penetration, GDP growth and population
growth. He also mentioned financing as an enabling factor for growth.
Even established markets show potential, he said: “The region on a whole
has shown consecutive double digit growth over the last five years. And
Elekta has the highest market share in replacements and new centers over
the competition.”

The Capital Markets Day was held on June 9 from 09.00 CET to 12.00 CET,
at the Museum of Modern Art in Stockholm. A webcast from the event will
be available on Elekta's website
(www.elekta.com (http://www.elekta.com)).
 

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For further information, please contact:

Stina Thorman, Vice President Corporate Communications, Elekta AB
Tel: +46 8 587 254 37, e-mail:
stina.thorman@elekta.com (stina.thorman@elekta.com)
Time zone: CET, Central European

The above information is such that Elekta AB (publ) shall make public in
accordance with the Securities Market Act and/or the Financial
Instruments Trading Act. The information was published at 12.00 CET on
June 9, 2011.

About Elekta
Elekta is a human care company pioneering significant innovations and
clinical solutions for treating cancer and brain disorders. The company
develops sophisticated, state-of-the-art tools and treatment planning
systems for radiation therapy and radiosurgery, as well as
workflow-enhancing software systems across the spectrum of cancer care.
Stretching the boundaries of science and technology, providing
intelligent and resource-efficient solutions that give confidence to
both healthcare providers and patients, Elekta aims to improve, prolong
and even save patient lives, making the future possible today.

Today, Elekta solutions in oncology and neurosurgery are used in more
than 5,000 hospitals globally, and every day more than 100,000 patients
receive diagnosis, treatment or follow-up with the help of a solution
from the Elekta Group.

Elekta employs about 2,800 employees globally. The corporate
headquarters is located in Stockholm, Sweden, and the company is listed
on the Nordic Exchange under the ticker EKTAb