Full year
· Order intake increased by 11% to 1,406.9 MSEK (1,273.6)
· Net sales up by 15% to 1,417.7 MSEK (1,232.3)
· Operating profit increased by 21% to 150.3 MSEK (124.3)
· Profit after tax up 11% to 99.1 MSEK (89.5)
· Earnings per share increased to 5.03 SEK (4.61)
· The Board proposes a dividend of 2.25 SEK (2.00)
Fourth Quarter
· Order intake up 15% to 343.2 MSEK (328.0)
· Net sales increased by 3% to 345.3 MSEK (336.2)
· Operating profit was 29.1 MSEK (35.0)
· Profit after tax was 15.2 MSEK (26.2)
· Q4 profits charged with 2.8 MSEK of expenses relating to the floods in Thailand
COMMENTS FROM FREDRIK JÖNSSON, CEO
"For the full year, Beijer Electronics was able to post its highest sales to date and record profits. Sales increased by 15% to over SEK 1.4 billion, and operating profit increased by over 20% to 150 MSEK. Our acquisitions, QSI of the US and Korenix of Taiwan, have been successful, exceeding expectations. They both made significant contributions to growth and profits. Simultaneously, we retained good cost control, which has had its effect on profits.
Profits were charged with non-recurring expenses relating to the floods in Thailand and increased product development expenses in the fourth quarter.
Overall, Beijer Electronics is in an expansion phase. We invested over 100 MSEK in developing products in 2011, which will be launched progressively in 2012. The largest initiative relates to an all-new global platform of HMI terminals based on iX software. We also increased resources on the sales side and opened sales offices in Brazil and India.
The IDC business area remains convincing and I'm really satisfied with its progress in 2011. Organic growth was high and the acquisition of Korenix had a positive impact on the business area. Our initiative in the American market has gone faster and produced better results than expected, and this operation posted a positive profit as early as in the fourth quarter. We have high hopes of continued, brisk expansion in IDC.
The Automation business area has gradually increased sales and profits. Automation made a strong recovery for the full year, which meant that its profitability converged on its long-term target. Another positive was that all the markets that Automation addresses achieved positive profits in the year for the first time.
The HMI Products business area achieved good growth and higher profitability for the full year. The acquisition of QSI has made significant contributions to sales and profits. However, sales reduced late in the year due to lower demand in China, and from some brand label customers. We have addressed this by upscaling marketing initiatives and expanding our sales team. In addition, we launched our new terminals in the spring. However, we expect it to take some time before these initiatives have an effect on sales."
INVITATION TO CONFERENCE CALL
Today a conference call will be held for press and analysts where President and CEO Fredrik Jönsson and CFO Anna Belfrage present the company and comment on the report.
Time: Â Thursday February 9 at 10.30 a.m. CET
To participate in the conference, please dial:
From Sweden: +46(0)8 50685335
From the UK:+44 (0) 2071539156
To access the presentation, please use this link:
https://www.anywhereconference.com/?Conference=108266435&PIN=340906
The interim report and the presentation will be available at Beijer Electronics' website www.beijergroup.com under Investors/Presentations.
A recording of the conference call will also be available here after the event.
Welcome!
For more information, please contact:
President and CEO, Fredrik Jönsson, tel +46 (0)40 35 86 10, mobile +46 (0)705 17 16 26
CFO, Anna Belfrage, tel +46 (0)40 35 86 53, mobile +46 (0)706 35 86 53
Report
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