EXEL INDUSTRIES :2016-2017 fourth quarter business activity Record fourth quarter revenue growth of 43.8%

PRESS RELEASE                                                                                                       October 26, 2017

(*) Following the change in the annual closing date (from August to September), the 2015-2016 fiscal year was 13 months long with a four-month fourth quarter
(**)Constant consolidation scope = 2016-2017 current consolidation scope excluding the first quarter of ET Works, acquired in January 2016

Revenue for the fourth quarter was €273.5 million, up by 43.8%, primarily thanks to the Sugar Beet Harvester business, in line with our forecasts, and also thanks to Agricultural and Industrial Spraying.
Annual revenue for the 2016-2017 fiscal year was €874.2 million, up by 13.4% at current consolidation scope and 11.7% at constant consolidation scope. Changes in foreign exchange rates, primarily for GBP, had a negative impact of €7.3 million on revenue for the period..

• Agricultural Spraying

The Agricultural Spraying business grew by 19.8% over the fourth quarter. The growth was primarily generated in Northern and Eastern Europe (the UK, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland and the Baltic countries) and in the USA and Australia.

ET Works continued its recovery with a fourth quarter up by 10.1%. At constant consolidation scope, ET Works' revenue grew by 34.3% over the year.

The Agricultural Spraying business ended the year up 4.2% at current consolidation scope and 0.5% at constant consolidation scope with very different performances by region:

• Strong growth in the USA, Australia and Ukraine;
• A significant decline in France, primarily over the first three quarters, followed by stabilization in the fourth quarter. The level of activity over the year was much too weak in comparison to the available capacity at the companies which only sell in France.
   
  • Sugar Beet Harvesters

Revenue was €115.9 million for the fourth quarter alone, i.e. as much as in the entire previous fiscal year. The strong involvement of our teams, the flexibility of our manufacturing units and the additional resources deployed enabled us to deliver on a record order book.
The Sugar Beet Harvester business increased by 51.3% over the year. Growth picked up as the wait-and-see attitude resulting from negotiations for exiting sugar beet quotas in 2016 were wrapped up, and the crop growing area in Europe (Germany, France, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands) was increased by 20%.

• Gardening Spraying and Watering

             
Gardening Spraying and Watering ended the year with more moderate growth of 2.6% in the fourth quarter as a result of less favorable weather conditions in England.
Annual growth was up 12.2%, carried by the expansion of the European distribution network, the success of new products and very favorable weather conditions during the spring. Excluding the GBP/EUR currency effect, growth would have been 18.5%.

• Industrial Spraying

Industrial Spraying grew by 17.0% in the fourth quarter, notably as a result of the progress made on the Nissan contract in Sunderland in the UK and the PSA Vigo contract in Spain.
The business saw solid growth of 8.5% over the full year, based both on the sale of standard equipment and on projects located primarily in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

• Outlook and strategy

Mr. Guerric Ballu, Chief Executive Officer of EXEL Industries Group stated that:

"We're ending the year on a high thanks to exceptional sales of Sugar Beet Harvesters and solid growth in our other activities sustained by our international expansion.
ET Works, which was acquired by the Group in January 2016, returned to growth following the sale of its distribution network's inventories and its capitalization on synergies in product, know-how and human resources with the other companies of EXEL Industries Group. ET Works had two consecutive quarters of strong growth in the agricultural machines market in the United States, despite the fact that the market has remained slow.

There were no major negative surprises for the 2017 harvest which has been deemed exceptional in Russia. In the Agricultural Spraying business, we're expecting a wait-and-see attitude from farmers in France, as long as cereal prices remain low. However, sales should take off in France as soon as prices increase. The Sugar Beet Harvester business should remain constant next year although it will likely be somewhat lower than this exceptional year.
Gardening Spraying and Watering, the development of the distribution network, and innovation, will continue to drive growth. Industrial Spraying is continuing its strategy of refocusing sales on our distribution networks and standard equipment, which are our most profitable businesses. This should offset the decline in automotive projects.

While our markets are subject to change, they will remain profitable over the long term. Our international expansion strategy and our presence in four business areas will smooth out fluctuations while ensuring profitable, long-term growth."

Upcoming events: 2016-2017 full-year results: December 19, 2017
   2017-2018 first quarter revenue: January 23, 2018

About EXEL Industries: www. : exel-industries.com ,   @EXEL_Industries

EXEL Industries' main businesses are agricultural sprayers (world leader) and industrial spraying. The Group is also present in the consumer watering products market (European leader) and in sugar beet harvesters (world leader). EXEL Industries is continually expanding its markets by means of constant innovation and an international strategy. EXEL Industries employs around 3,750 people spread over 29 countries on five continents.

NYSE-Euronext Paris, SRD Long, CAC Mid&Small 190
EnterNext© PEA-PME 150 index (Ticker EXE / ISIN FR0004527638)

This press release is available in French and English on our website and Twitter.

Guerric Ballu                                                                  Sophie Bouheret                                                                               
Group Chief Executive Officer                                    Group CFO / Investor Relations
@Gu3rric                                                                     sophie.bouheret@exel-industries.com  Tel: +33 (0)171 704950