NORMA Group generates record sales and earnings in 2012

NORMA Group AG ("NORMA Group"), a global market and technology leader for engineered joining technology, generated outstanding sales and earnings in financial year 2012. The company, which is MDAX-listed since 18 March 2013, increased sales by 4.0% to EUR 604.6 million during the reporting period (2011: EUR 581.4 million). Acquisitions in Switzerland, Italy and Malaysia contributed to this result. Together, the acquired companies generated sales of EUR 14.3 million in 2012. NORMA Group improved adjusted operating earnings (adjusted EBITA) by 2.7% to EUR 105.4 million in spite of the difficult environment in Europe (2011: EUR 102.7 million). The adjusted EBITA margin remained at a consistently high level of 17.4%. The company grew the pro forma earnings per share by 13 cent year-on-year to EUR 1.94 based on the number of shares as at 31 December 2012. “We are pleased to look back over another strong financial year. We generated outstanding sales and earnings in 2012 in spite of the volatile European markets,” said Werner Deggim, CEO of NORMA Group. “We again significantly strengthened our market position by making four acquisitions and further building our capacities predominantly in the Asia-Pacific region. This makes us optimistic for this financial year in which we expect to grow moderately from 2012 levels.”

NORMA Group expects Group sales to grow moderately in 2013 compared to the previous year. The companies acquired in 2012 and 2013 are expected to generate additional sales of about EUR 20 million.

Growth in the Americas and Asia-Pacific, slight decline in the EMEA region

Performance across the three regional segments EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa), the Americas and Asia-Pacific was mixed in financial year 2012. While the Americas and Asia-Pacific grew further, sales in the EMEA region declined slightly in 2012. In spite of the weaker macroeconomic environment in this region, however, sales decreased only slightly by 1.4% to EUR 367.5 million (2011: EUR 372.7  million). The quarterly decline in sales stabilised in the fourth quarter of 2012, which already reflected initial positive effects from the new Euro 6 emission standard. The acquisition of Connectors Verbindungstechnik AG in Switzerland and Nordic Metalblok S.r.l. in Italy also made a contribution to sales. Moreover, NORMA Group expanded its production and distribution activities in the EMEA region in 2012, paving the way for additional growth. As part of this effort, it opened a distribution centre in Moscow, Russia, and expanded the production facility in Newbury, UK.

The Americas performed well overall in 2012. Sales grew by 11.8% to EUR 193.3 million (2011: EUR 173.0 million). The political uncertainty also weighed on the economy in the fourth quarter of 2012 and prevented the company from extending the strong 18.3% sales increase generated over the first nine months to year-end.

The Asia-Pacific segment has developed well in 2012. Sales grew by EUR 22.6% to EUR 43.8 million (2011: EUR 35.7 million). The company expanded its regional distribution and manufacturing capacities in India and China in order to capture the growth opportunities in this region. It also opened branches in Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines. In November 2012, NORMA Group acquired Chien Jin Plastic Sdn. Bhd. in Malaysia, thereby strengthening its expertise in water management.

Improved equity ratio – net debt further reduced

For year-end 2012, NORMA Group reported EUR 288.3 million in equity in the consolidated balance sheet, up 12.6% year on year (31 December 2011: EUR 256.0 million). The increase resulted mainly from the Group result of EUR 56.6 million. This brought the equity ratio to 41.7% after 39.5% on 31 December 2011. In spite of the acquisitions and the dividend payment, net debt excluding hedging instruments decreased slightly to EUR 174.2 million by 31 December 2012 compared to the previous year (31 December 2011: EUR 176.7 million). As a result, the ratio of net debt to equity (gearing) fell substantially year-on-year to 0.7 at year-end 2012 (31 December 2011: 0.8).

Inclusion into the MDAX

Effective 18 March 2013, NORMA Group was included in the MDAX, the index for medium-sized companies of the German Stock Exchange (Deutsche Börse). Free float in the shares has been 100% since the beginning of January 2013. “We are particularly proud that we were included into the MDAX not even two years after the IPO,” says Dr. Othmar Belker, CFO of NORMA Group. “With this decision, the stock exchange recognises our sustainable business model and our long-term growth strategy.”

Proposed dividend of EUR 0.65 per share

The management board and the supervisory board of NORMA Group will propose a dividend of EUR 0.65 per share for financial year 2012. This corresponds to a distribution of EUR 20.7 million. As a consequence, the pay-out ratio amounts to 33.5% of the Group’s adjusted result in 2012 (EUR 61.8 million). In addition, it is planned to propose the transformation of NORMA Group AG into the legal formof a European company (Societas Europaea, “SE”) at the Annual General Meeting. The transformation into an SE is a consistent follow-up step. It also embodies European values in a corporate sense.

As at 31 December 2012, NORMA Group had 4,485 employees globally including temporary staff, 233 employees more than a year before (2011: 4,252 employees). In Germany, the number of employees declined by 44 to 864 by 31 December 2012, since the number of temporary staff had been reduced.

Differentiated outlook for 2013

From today’s perspective, NORMA Group expects the global economy to grow approximately at the same rate in 2013 as it grew in 2012, albeit in a volatile environment across the European countries. The BRICs and other emerging markets are expected to be the growth drivers. Supported by solid growth in China, the expansion of the activities in some Asian markets and the gain in market share, NORMA Group expects to grow by more than ten per cent in the Asia-Pacific region. After solid growth in the previous year, NORMA Group forecasts neutral to moderate growth in the North American markets (calculated in euros) driven by an appreciation trend of the US dollar. For the EMEA region, NORMA Group expects neutral to slow year-on-year growth in 2013. This is supported by the new generation of engines and the introduction of the Euro 6 emission standard in 2014, which result in a greater number of interfaces and greater need for higher quality joining solutions.

Overall, NORMA Group expects Group sales to grow moderately in 2013 compared to the previous year, unless the economy slows down significantly. The consolidation of the Group’s acquisition of 2012 and 2013 is expected to result in additional sales of EUR 20 million. The company strives for a sustainable EBITA margin on the level of the past three years of more than 17% in 2013 (2010: 17.4%; 2011: 17.7%; 2012: 17.4%). Sales growth should increase in 2014 compared to 2013. The company expects to further increase both Group sales and earnings across all three segments in 2014.

NORMA Group AG – 2012 key figures at a glance