Highlights
Umicore's revenues were down 2% year on year with an increase in Catalysis and Energy Materials offset by a decrease in Recycling. Recurring EBIT in the period was down 18% year on year due to the impact of lower metal prices on recycling margins, a less favourable product and regional mix and higher start-up costs in Catalysis.
· Revenues of € 2.4 billion
· Recurring EBITDA of € 463 million
· Recurring EBIT of € 304 million
· ROCE of 13.6%
· Recurring net profit (Group share) of € 218 million
· Recurring EPS of € 1.96
A number of cost reduction measures were taken during the course of 2013, some of the benefits of which were already felt during the year. These were mainly in Performance Materials and to a lesser extent in Energy Materials.
Umicore continued to invest in its longer term growth initiatives. Capital expenditures were € 280 million, the majority of which related to growth programmes in Catalysis, Energy Materials and Recycling. A number of investments should start contributing in 2014, particularly in heavy duty diesel catalysis and in rechargeable battery materials. Research & Development expenditure amounted to € 141 million.
Net cashflow before financing was positive and net debt stood at € 215 million, corresponding to a gearing ratio of 11.1%.
The Board of Directors will propose a gross annual dividend of € 1.00 per share at the Annual General Meeting on 29th April, of which € 0.50 was already paid out as an interim dividend in September 2013. At 5 February 2014 Umicore held 10,248,661 of its own shares in treasury, or 8.5% of the issued shares.
Marc Grynberg, CEO, commented: "Although the global economy remains in a state of flux, some of our markets are starting to show signs of recovery. A number of Umicore's activities have also taken steps to improve their competitiveness and the benefits thereof have started to make themselves felt. While metal prices may prove less favourable for us this year, the long-term trends that make our products and services so valuable remain very much intact. We will continue to provide our businesses with the means to deliver on their undoubted potential."
Outlook
While we expect a definite improvement in the performance of our product businesses, this may not be sufficient to fully offset the impact of lower metal prices on the profitability of the Recycling business group. If current metal prices persist, full year recurring EBIT could end up slightly below the level of 2013.
