Media information 2017

 

• Operating revenue increases 6.3% to CHF 70.4 million in the first half of 2017/18 (previous year: CHF 66.2 million)
• Growth across all regions and main product lines
• EBIT reaches CHF 6.4 million, (previous year: CHF 7.9 million; -19.0%)
• Group net income of CHF 4.1 million (previous year: CHF 6.3 million; -34.9%)
• Solid pro forma increase in EBIT and net income excluding last year’s arbitration proceeds of CHF 2.3 million
• Equity ratio of 71.8% (previous year: 72.3%)

 

Steinhausen, November 23, 2017 – During the first half of the 2017/18 financial year, Carlo Gavazzi recorded an increase in revenue, driven by sales improvements in all regions and main product lines. In local currency, operating revenue grew by 6.0% and bookings by 7.4%. In Swiss Francs, operating revenue increased by 6.3% to CHF 70.4 million (CHF 66.2 million in 2016/17). Sales grew 21.1% in Asia-Pacific, 4.2% in Europe and 1.1% in North America.

Bookings grew by 7.8% to CHF 73.1 million (CHF 67.8 million in 2016/17), resulting in a book-to-bill ratio of 1.04 at September 30, 2017.

Gross profit increased by CHF 1.8 million to CHF 38.0 million (CHF 36.2 million in 2016/17) while the gross margin decreased by 0.7 percentage points to 54.0% due to more aggressive sales efforts. Operating expenses went up by CHF 1.0 million from CHF 30.6 million in the previous half year to CHF 31.6 million owing to continuing increased investments in R&D and Marketing.

Operating profit (EBIT) reached CHF 6.4 million, compared to CHF 7.9 million (-19.0%) in the previous year. The reason for this decrease was the one-off effect last year of the non-operational arbitration outcome with net proceeds of CHF 2.3 million. Deducting the arbitration proceeds would give a real EBIT comparison of CHF 6.4 million, compared to CHF 5.6 million (+14.3%) in the previous year.

Group net income decreased by CHF 2.2 million to CHF 4.1 million (CHF 6.3 million in 2016/17), mainly due to (i) a swing in the exchange difference of CHF 0.7 million with an exchange loss of CHF 0.6 million this half year compared to an exchange gain of CHF 0.1 million in the previous half year plus (ii) the arbitration income of CHF 2.3 million described above (iii) CHF 0.8 million additional operating profit. At September 30, 2017, shareholders‘ equity amounted to CHF 92.2 million, giving an equity ratio of 71.8%.

Expanding share of sales outside Europe
Sales in Europe increased by 4.2% versus the same period of last year. Business development was driven by Central and South European countries, which leveraged on improving economic and market conditions and on strengthening exports.

Sales in Asia-Pacific increased by 21.1%, mainly due to very good developments in China with OEMs in industrial automation and in South East Asia with our network of distributors.

Sales in North America were up by 1.1% compared to the previous year, confirming the effectiveness of ongoing marketing and sales programs with OEMs in the area.

The geographical share of revenue outside Europe continued to expand to 35.0%, with sales in North America and Asia-Pacific accounting for 18.8% and 16.2%, respectively.

Sensors driving sales growth
Sales in priority markets increased 2.2% versus the same period of last year. Among the selected priority markets, Plastics and Agriculture grew respectively by 19.5% and 11.5%.

Sensors sales were 8.5% above the same period of last year mainly due to a robust increase in photoelectric, capacitive and inductive sensors sales, thanks to new applications in industrial automation and positive development of ongoing initiatives.

Controls product sales were up 3.6% mainly due to a 6.0% increase in energy products and 5.2% in monitoring relays. While the development of energy products was mainly driven by ongoing energy efficiency programs across building and industrial automation markets, the increase in monitoring relays was specifically driven by business development programs in North America and Asia.

Sales of Switches products grew by 6.5% compared to the previous year. Solid state relays sales increased 12.0%, also thanks to the development in industrial automation markets, particularly in Plastics. Motor controls sales were 4.7% above the previous year also due to further development in the HVAC market.

Outlook
While growth of the global economy has gained momentum, the political uncertainties are clearly rising. Barring unforeseen events, Carlo Gavazzi sees interesting growth opportunities in major markets. Accordingly, the company continues to invest in R&D and Marketing and keeps focusing on geographical coverage, particularly in regions outside Europe.

Consolidated key figures (CHF million)

Income statement	1. HY 2017/18	1. HY 2016/17	%
Bookings	73.1	67.8	+7.8
Operating revenue	70.4	66.2	+6.3
EBITDA	8.2	9.6	-14.6
EBIT	6.4	7.9	-19.0
Net income	4.1	6.3	-34.9
Cash flow	5.8	8.0	-27.5
Additions to fixed assets	1.0	1.0	0.0
Balance sheet	30.9.2017	31.3.2017
Net working capital	35.7	31.5	+13.3
Net cash position	41.8	49.0	-14.7
Pro forma comparison excluding arbitration income Income statement 1. HY 2017/18 1. HY 2016/17 % EBITDA 8.2 7.3 +12.3 EBIT 6.4 5.6 +14.3 Net income 4.1 4.0 +2.5 Cash flow 5.8 5.7 1.8 Interim Report The complete interim report can be downloaded from http://www.carlogavazzi.com/en/investors/interim-report.html For further information please contact: Rolf Schläpfer Hirzel.Neef.Schmid.Konsulenten Phone +41 43 344 42 42 E-Mail rolf.schlaepfer@konsulenten.ch

Steinhausen, July 25, 2017 – At today’s annual shareholders’ meeting of Carlo Gavazzi Holding AG the Directors Valeria Gavazzi, Federico Foglia, Stefano Premoli Trovati and Daniel Hirschi as representative of the holders of bearer shares were re-elected for another period of one year. As proposed by the Board, Valeria Gavazzi was confirmed as Chairman.

The shareholders also approved the distribution of an ordinary dividend of CHF 15.00 per bearer share and CHF 3.00 per registered share.

In addition, they approved the board compensation for the preceding term of office, the fixed compensation for the next business year for executive management and their variable compensation for the 2016/17 business year.

All other items of the agenda were also approved by the shareholders.


About Carlo Gavazzi:
Carlo Gavazzi is a publicly listed international electronics group (SIX: GAV) with activities in the design and marketing of electronic control components for factory and building automation.

Please visit our website: www.carlogavazzi.com

For further information please contact:
Rolf Schläpfer
Hirzel.Neef.Schmid.Konsulenten
Phone +41 43 344 42 42
E-Mail rolf.schlaepfer@konsulenten.ch

 

Steinhausen, June 30, 2017 – The electronic group Carlo Gavazzi Holding AG has issued the invitation and the agenda for the Annual General Meeting 2017, to take place on Tuesday, July 25, 2017, 10:30 a.m., at the Parkhotel in Zug.

The invitation and agenda are available at:
http://www.carlogavazzi.com/en/investors/financial-calendar.html

The annual report 2016/17 has already been published on the occasion of the full year results communication on June 22, 2017. It is available at:
http://www.carlogavazzi.com/en/investors/annual-report.html

Documents can also be ordered at the following address:
Carlo Gavazzi Holding AG
rolf.schlaepfer@konsulenten.ch
Phone: +41 43 344 42 42

 

 

• Operating revenue increases to CHF 135.4 million (previous year: CHF 130.2 million); +3.9% in local currency (+4.0% in CHF)
• EBIT reaches CHF 16.7 million (CHF 14.4 million in 2015/16)
• Net income increases to CHF 13.4 million (CHF 9.6 million in 2015/16)
• Consistently high equity ratio of 73.6% (2016: 72.9%)
• Dividend of CHF 15.00 per bearer share proposed to AGM

 

Steinhausen, June 22, 2017 – Carlo Gavazzi recorded a sound revenue growth in the 2016/17 business year. The favorable outcome of an arbitration had a positive impact on EBIT. In addition, net income was positively influenced by exchange gains. Excluding these items both EBIT and net income would be at around last year’s level.

Operating revenue increased by 3.9% and bookings by 6.4% in local currency, on the back of solid sales in key markets and the ongoing launch of new products. The Group continued to implement its strategy of investing in its product portfolio and in the expansion of the sales network in markets outside Europe. Operating revenue in Swiss Francs increased by 4.0% to CHF 135.4 million (CHF 130.2 million in 2015/16). Bookings grew by 6.5% to CHF 137.7 million (CHF 129.3 million in 2015/16), resulting in a book-to-bill ratio of 1.02 at March 31, 2017.

Gross profit increased by CHF 2.5 million to CHF 74.7 million (CHF 72.2 million in 2015/16) while the gross margin decreased slightly by 0.4 percentage points to 55.1%. Operating expenses went up by CHF 2.0 million from CHF 58.1 million in the previous year to CHF 60.1 million following the business decision to increase investments in R&D and Marketing in America and Asia-Pacific.

Operating profit (EBIT) reached CHF 16.7 million, compared to CHF 14.4 million (+16.0%) in the previous year. The reason for this increase was the favorable outcome of an arbitration contributing non-operational, non-recurring exceptional net proceeds of CHF 2.4 million. As a result, the EBIT margin increased to 12.4% (previous year: 11.0%).

Group net income increased by CHF 3.8 million to CHF 13.4 million (CHF 9.6 million in 2015/16), mainly due to (i) a change in the exchange difference of CHF 0.9 million with an exchange gain of CHF 0.2 million this year compared to an exchange loss of CHF 0.7 million in the previous year plus (ii) the arbitration income of CHF 2.4 million described above.

At March 31, 2017, shareholders’ equity stood at CHF 95.2 million (CHF 91.4 million in 2015/16), giving an equity ratio of 73.6% (2016: 72.9%) with a net cash position of CHF 49.0 million.

Having assessed the results, the Board of Directors will propose to the Annual Shareholders’ Meeting that the Company pays a dividend of CHF 15.00 per bearer share and CHF 3.00 per registered share for the reporting period, corresponding to a pay-out ratio of 79.6%.

Growth in all three regions – share outside Europe continues to grow

Sales grew across all three geographical regions in local currency. In Europe, sales were 3.1% above the previous year due to good performance in industrial automation in Central and Southern European countries, and stronger activities in energy efficiency in the Nordic market.

Sales in Asia-Pacific increased by 5.1% compared to the previous year mainly due to progress of business development programs in China.

In North America, sales increased by 5.9% compared to the previous year thanks to the dedicated programs deployed with distributors in industrial automation markets.

The geographical distribution of revenue continues to broaden, with sales outside Europe expanding to 33.9%, with North America and Asia-Pacific accounting for 19.9% and 14.0%, respectively.

Product investments paying off

The Group continued to implement its strategy of investing in its product portfolio. The controls product line performed above the previous year, due to the contribution from energy management products, which grew by 6% versus the previous year. This positive momentum is mainly due to the continuous increase in demand for energy monitoring products and web-based monitoring solutions in conventional energy, building automation and heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) markets.

Sensor products performed slightly above the previous year. A positive contribution came from photoelectric sensors, which increased by more than 3% versus the previous year, mainly due to the PD30 family of products and PF74 fork sensors. The former combines excellent sensing abilities with an optimized compact housing design for industrial automation applications in packaging & wrapping lines or in the semiconductor market while the latter is designed to level and position applications in elevators.

The switches product line grew by more than 12% versus last year, driven by strong sales both in the RG platform and scroll compressor soft starters. The RG platform has improved penetration in China primarily in plastics and semiconductor applications while scroll compressor soft starters benefitted from business development with manufacturers of commercial refrigeration equipment.

The fieldbus product line declined versus the previous year due to decreasing sales of Dupline products mainly in conveyors for mining applications.

Sales of products in priority markets performed better than overall sales growth, with an increase of more than 19% and 9%, respectively, in the HVAC and plastics markets.

Addressing Industry 4.0 requirements

Introduction of new and enhanced products is a key element in the business development towards new and existing markets and geographies. The deployment of IO link features across core sensor families will address key requirements arising from Industry 4.0, by providing value-added functionalities such as increased diagnostics to assist manufacturers in performing predictive maintenance on their machinery.

The development of the new platform of multi-protocol MTI energy analyzers will allow customers to implement metering and data analysis through internet in building automation and emerging e-storage.

The deployment of integrated communication in solid state switching devices will extend the usability in our customers’ controls systems with enhanced control and diagnostics functions to improve predictive maintenance in industrial automation. The integration of web-based energy management and fieldbus SB-web control platforms will drive business development in energy efficiency applications through enhanced load management in commercial building and production facilities.

Outlook

Growth of the global economy has gained momentum, particularly in the developing countries and the scenario has improved also for the industrialized countries. The Group experiences interesting growth opportunities in major markets, particularly outside Europe, and continues to strengthen its product portfolio. Carlo Gavazzi keeps focusing on geographical coverage by improving the effectiveness of the direct sales organization and by further developing the network of distributors and agents.

The complete Annual Report 2016/17 of the Carlo Gavazzi Group is available on: http://www.carlogavazzi.com/en/investors/annual-report.html

 

Income statement	2016/17	2015/16	%
Bookings	137.7	129.3	+6.5
Operating revenue	135.4	130.2	+4.0
EBITDA	20.0	17.6	+13.6
EBIT	16.7	14.4	+16.0
EBIT margin	12.4%	11%
Net income	13.4	9.6	+39.6
Cash flow	16.7	12.9	+29.5
Balance sheet (as at 31 March)	2017	2016
Net working capital	31.5	29.9	+5.4
Shareholders' equity	95.2	91.4	+4.2
Total assets	129.3	125.4	+3.1
Equity as % of assets	73.6%	72.9%

 

 

About Carlo Gavazzi:

Carlo Gavazzi is a publicly listed international electronics group (SIX: GAV) with activities in the design and marketing of electronic control components for factory and building automation.

Please visit our website: www.carlogavazzi.com

For further information please contact:

Rolf Schläpfer
Hirzel.Neef.Schmid.Konsulenten
Phone +41 43 344 42 42
E-Mail: rolf.schlaepfer@konsulenten.ch