Sartorius Stedim Biotech: Growth dynamics temporarily dampened; continued strong mid-term perspectives
| € in millions unless otherwise specified | 9 months 2017 | 9 months 2016 | Growth in % | Growth in % const. fx |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sales revenue | 806.5 | 785.1 | 2.7 | 3.3 |
| EMEA1 | 345.9 | 342.7 | 1.0 | 2.0 |
| Americas1 | 272.6 | 290.2 | -6.1 | -6.3 |
| Asia | Pacific1 | 187.9 | 152.2 | 23.4 | 23.5 |
| Order intake | 853.0 | 806.6 | 5.8 | 6.3 |
| EBITDA2 | 216.2 | 214.1 | 1.0 | |
| EBITDA margin2 in % | 26.8 | 27.3 | ||
| Net profit3 | 132.1 | 131.3 | 0.6 | |
| Earnings per share3 in € | 1.43 | 1.42 | 0.6 |
1 According to customers’ location
2 Underlying EBITDA = earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, and adjusted for extraordinary items
3 Underlying net profit = net profit after non-controlling interest; adjusted for extraordinary items and non-cash amortization, as well as based on a normalized financial result and tax rate
Revenue growth rate influenced by high comps and temporary effects
Sartorius Stedim Biotech, a leading supplier for the biopharmaceutical industry, increased its sales revenue in the first nine months of 2017 compared to a very high previous-year base by 3.3%. While business in Asia performed very dynamically, demand was soft in the Americas and parts of Europe. This was a result of customer inventory destocking, the temporary interruption of deliveries from the company’s facility in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, and ongoing restrictions of a partner’s capacity to supply cell culture media in North America. The acquisitions of kSep and Umetrics contributed close to 1 percentage point to sales growth. Driven by double-digit growth in Q3, order intake was up by 6.3% in the reporting period.
Slight increase in underlying EBITDA
Influenced by unfavorable currency effects, SSB’s underlying EBITDA increased by 1.0% to €216.2 million; the respective margin reached 26.8% (9M 2016: 27.3%) and would have been approx. at previous year´s level in constant currencies. Underlying earnings per share were €1.43 (9M 2016: €1.42).
Financial position remains strong
In the reporting period, the financial position of Sartorius Stedim Biotech has remained very robust. Net debt at the end of September 2017 stood at €149.5 million. The equity ratio amounted to 61.4%, and the ratio of net debt to underlying EBITDA was 0.5.
Full-year 2017 guidance adjusted, mid-term outlook confirmed
Management assumes that the previously mentioned temporary factors will influence the financial results for the full year of 2017 as well. Therefore, SSB now expects that sales revenue growth will reach approx. 4% in constant currencies (previous guidance: approx. 8% to 12%) and due to adverse exchange rate effects the underlying EBITDA margin will be approx. at the prior-year level of 27.5% (previous guidance: approx. 0.5 percentage points in cc vs. FY 2016). Capital expenditures are expected to be at the upper end of the bandwidth of around 10% to 13% of sales. As the fundamental market drivers are considered to be unchanged, management confirms its positive mid-term outlook for revenue growth and profitability.
This press release contains statements about the future development of the Sartorius Stedim Biotech Group. We cannot guarantee that the content of these statements will actually apply because these statements are based upon assumptions and estimates that harbor certain risks and uncertainties.
