GEA releases preliminary figures for 2018 and indication for the 2019 financial year

In financial year 2018 and based on constant exchange rates:

• Revenue rose by approximately 7.9% (most recent forecast: approximately plus 7.5%).
• Operating EBITDA margin amounted to about 10.5% (most recent forecast: approximately 11.1%).
• Operating cash flow driver*** margin amounted to approximately 6.0% (most recent forecast: 6.5 to 7.0%).

Nonetheless, also supported by the reduction in working capital of around €150 million during the 4Q18, the net liquidity at the end of December 2018 improved to approximately €70 million (actual net liquidity at the end of September €330 million).

The Executive Board expects for 2019 that revenues will be moderately lower than in the previous year and that operating EBITDA will decline to a range from €440 to 480 million. Herein, for the sake of comparability, the effects from the initial application of IFRS 16 are not yet reflected.

This indicative assessment is based, on the one hand, on the further deteriorating macroeconomic conditions entailing increased price pressure. On the other hand, rising personnel and IT infrastructure costs will have an adverse impact on profitability in the current financial year. In addition, the preliminary 2018 result benefits from non-recurring other operating income in the order of €20 to 25 million.

In view of these developments, GEA considers its mid-term guidance from March 2018 no longer valid.

Based on the cautious preliminary outlook, GEA assumes that tax loss carryforwards will be usable only to a lesser extent, which should result in a tax expense in the financial year 2018 from an impairment of deferred tax assets by a higher double-digit million amount.

On March 14, 2019, GEA will publish its final figures for 2018, including the dividend distribution proposal, as well as the final outlook for the 2019 financial year together with the audited consolidated financial statements for the year 2018.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldfertilizer.com/special-reports/12022019/gea-releases-preliminary-figures-for-2018-and-indication-for-the-2019-financial-year/