News Details

CORPORATE NEWS Luxembourg/Koblenz, 17.02.2016

Stabilus S.A. boosts Q1 FY2016 sales revenues by approx. 24 percent and increases full year guidance

- Revenues in Q1 FY2016 +23.8% to EUR 167.3 million

- Adjusted EBITDA Q1 +27.0% to EUR 28.7 million

- Adjusted EBIT Q1 +37.3% to EUR 21.0 million

- Q1 earnings EUR 13.5 million (Q1 FY2015: EUR 7.7 million)

- Guidance for full fiscal year increased from EUR 660 million to EUR 680 million; expected adjusted EBIT margin to remain within 12% to 13% range

Luxembourg/Koblenz, February 17, 2016 - Stabilus S.A. (ISIN: LU1066226637), the globally leading developer and producer of gas springs and hydraulic dampers, closed out the first quarter of its fiscal year ending on September 30, 2016 with a sharp increase in both revenues and earnings.

In the first quarter of the 2016 fiscal year, group revenues increased year-on-year by 23.8 percent, rising from EUR 135.1 million to EUR 167.3 million. Most notably in the NAFTA region (revenues +36.0 percent) and Europe (revenues +18.4 percent), Stabilus profited from strong growth in the Powerise business. The NAFTA region made a EUR 67.3 million contribution to total Q1 revenues (average USD/EUR exchange rate Q1 FY2016: 1.10$; Q1 FY2015: 1.25$). This strong operational development resulted mainly from increased business with gas springs and Powerise systems in the automotive segment. In addition, Stabilus benefited from the favorable USD/EUR exchange rate. The company was also able to significantly lift revenues by 11.4 percent in the Asia Pacific/RoW region, the key growth driver here having been new client order intake and its stronger footprint in China. Revenue originated in China rose by 19.8 percent to EUR 12.7 million in comparison to the previous year quarter. In line with the company's strategy "in the region, for the region", Stabilus in FY 2015 built its local R&D and industrial sales team in the Chinese market. Furthermore, by putting into operation a new production line in January 2016, Stabilus increased its capacity in China and gained the ability to offer locally produced industrial products.

With regard to its end markets, Automotive, with a 25.1 percent increase in revenues to EUR 120.6 million, remains the strongest business division, boosted by the electromechanical Powerise drive, sales of which rose by 44.1 percent to total EUR 42.5 million in the period under review. These positive developments in the Powerise division are the result of new customer orders for additional vehicle models and also due to the increasing number of end-users choosing the automatically opening and closing tailgate option when buying a new car. The Industrial (+22.5 percent to EUR 39.7 million) and Swivel Chair (+9.4 percent to EUR 7.0 million) divisions reported similarly robust growth.

The company also continues to perform well in terms of earnings. Adjusted EBITDA grew by 27.0 percent in Q1 FY2016, rising to EUR 28.7 million from EUR 22.6 million during the same period in the previous year. At EUR 21.0 million, adjusted operating income (adjusted EBIT) in Q1 FY2016 was 37.3 percent above the previous year's figure of EUR 15.3 million. This is equivalent to an adjusted EBIT margin of 12.6 percent.

Totaling EUR 13.5 million, the quarterly result was 75.3 percent higher than the figure of EUR 7.7 million reported for the first three months of the 2015 fiscal year.

Mark Wilhelms, CFO of Stabilus, commented: "The strong increase in our quarterly result is a clear reflection of the effects of the 2015 refinancing, in which we replaced our high-yield bond with a loan facility obtained at an attractive rate of interest."

Guidance for full fiscal year increased from EUR 660 million to EUR 680 million

The positive revenue development in the first quarter of this fiscal year gives the Stabilus managing board confidence for the remaining months of this fiscal year: based on increased customer order intake and a favorable USD/EUR exchange rate in Q1 FY2016, the managing board raises the Group's revenue forecast for the full fiscal year from EUR 660 million (forecast given in the Annual Report 2015, which assumed a USD/EUR exchange rate of $1.15 per EUR) to EUR 680 million.

The company's adjusted EBIT margin is expected to remain within the targeted 12.0 percent to 13.0 percent range.

Dietmar Siemssen, CEO of Stabilus, stated: "In the first three months of the current fiscal year, we continued along our profitable growth trajectory. We are benefiting from the fact that, right across all regions, gas springs, hydraulic dampers and electromechanical drives are being used in an increasing number of sectors, among them dynamic industries like renewables and healthcare. Furthermore, end-users in the automotive segment are opting ever more frequently for the comfort features we are able to offer them."

The full report for Q1 of the current 2016 fiscal year is available for download in the Investor Relations area at www.ir.stabilus.com.

About Stabilus

As a globally active automotive and industrial supplier, Stabilus develops and produces electromechanical drives (POWERISE) as well as gas springs and hydraulic dampers. Employing approximately 4,300 people worldwide, the company has its operational headquarters in Koblenz. In the fiscal year 2015, Stabilus generated revenues of around EUR 611 million. Stabilus operates eleven production plants across nine countries and distributes its products in over 50 countries in Europe, North, Central and South America and Asia Pacific via its regional offices and sales partners. Stabilus has been listed in the Prime Standard segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since May 2014 and was admitted to the SDAX index in September 2014.

Important Notice

This press release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Stabilus Group management and other information currently available to Stabilus. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here.