DGAP-News: A.S. Création Tapeten AG: Operating earnings

DGAP-News: A.S. Création Tapeten AG / Key word(s): Half Year Results/Interim Report A.S. Création Tapeten AG: Operating earnings improved 05.08.2013 / 08:15 --------------------------------------------------------------------- A.S. Création Tapeten AG, Gummersbach (ISIN DE000A1TNNN5) Operating earnings improved A.S. Création Tapeten AG, Europe's leading wallpaper manufacturer, today published the report on the six-month period ended June 30, 2013. A summary is provided below: Growing sales momentum With sales growing by 3.8% in the second quarter of 2013, A.S. Création was able to more than offset the 1.1% decline in sales recorded in the first three months of the current fiscal year. Accordingly, total Group revenues in the first half of 2013 were up by 1.2% on the previous year's EUR 103.6 million to EUR 104.8 million. In spite of the stronger growth momentum, sales revenues fell short of the company's expectations. One of the reasons for this was the sales performance in Germany. While the Managing Board had expected sales revenues to decline due to several large (first) orders received by the company in the previous year, the 8.9% drop in revenues recorded in the first half of the year was much higher than expected. Also, at 16.0%, sales growth in non-EU Eastern European countries in the first half of 2013 was lower than expected, as the marketing of the new Russian-made products is proceeding more slowly than projected. Improved EBIT The increase in sales revenues in the second quarter of 2013 led to improved operating earnings. At EUR 4.3 million, earnings before interest and taxes in the second quarter of 2013 were up by 5.7% on the previous year's EUR 4.0 million. A.S. Création's EBIT for the six-month period totalled EUR 9.5 million, which represents a 3.3% increase on the first half of 2012, when EBIT amounted to EUR 9.2 million. At 9.1% (previous year: 8.9%), the EBIT margin for the current fiscal year has returned to a level last reached in the first half of 2008, i.e. prior to the financial and economic crisis. This is due to the higher gross profit margin, which was up by 1.5 percentage points on the previous year's 49.1% to 50.6% in the first half of 2013. According to the Managing Board, this positive trend primarily reflects the innovation-driven product and marketing strategy pursued by A.S. Création for many years. Start-up losses in Russia weighing on net profit The start-up losses incurred by the Russian production company had an adverse impact on net profit. The joint venture, A.S. & Palitra, took the new production facility into operation at the end of October 2012. During the start-up phase, losses naturally occur and are reflected in high reject rates and low efficiency. Due to the delays in marketing the Russian-made products, however, the start-up losses increased more strongly than had been expected. At EUR 2.0 million, A.S. Création's pro-rata share in these losses in the first half of 2013 was much higher than in the same period of the previous year, when it had amounted to EUR 0.4 million. As a result, net profit for the first six months of 2013 was down by 23.4% on the previous year's EUR 5.5 million to EUR 4.2 million, which is not satisfactory. Full-year forecast for 2013 confirmed Against the background of the business performance in the first six months of 2013, the Group forecast, which provides for consolidated sales revenues of between EUR 210 million and EUR 220 million and a net profit of between EUR 9 million and EUR 11 million for the full year 2013, appears quite ambitious. In spite of the uncertainties, which primarily include the future developments in the Russian wallpaper market and the current consolidation in the German DIY store sector, the Managing Board still believes it is possible to reach the full-year forecast, although sales revenues and net profit will probably come in at the lower end of the projected range. The Group's key figures for the first six months of 2013 are summarised below: <pre> 01.01.- 01.01.- Change 30.06. 30.06. 2013 2012 Sales EUR '000 104,756 103,552 1.2 % Earnings before interest and EUR '000 9,498 9,194 3.3 % taxes (EBIT) Earnings before income taxes EUR '000 7,152 8,175 -12.5 % Net profit EUR '000 4,183 5,461 -23.4 % Earnings per share EUR/share 1.52 1.98 -23.2 % Cash flow EUR '000 10,415 10,061 3.5 % Capital expenditures EUR '000 5,774 7,965 -27.5 % Depreciation EUR '000 4,630 4,800 -3.5 % Number of employees (average) 833 809 3.0 % </pre> Gummersbach, August 5, 2013 A.S. Création Tapeten AG The Managing Board Inquiries Maik Krämer, Director of Finance and Controlling, phone +49-(0)2261/542-387, fax +49-(0)22 61/542-304, e-mail m.kraemer@as-creation.de The full six-month report is available at www.as-creation.de or from A.S. Création Tapeten AG, Frau Börngen, Südstr. 47, D - 51645 Gummersbach, phone: +49-(0)22 61/542-350, e-mail: investor@as-creation.de End of Corporate News --------------------------------------------------------------------- 05.08.2013 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a company of EQS Group AG. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. DGAP's Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases. Media archive at www.dgap-medientreff.de and www.dgap.de --------------------------------------------------------------------- Language: English Company: A.S. Création Tapeten AG Südstra�e 47 51645 Gummersbach Germany Phone: +49 22 61 54 2-0 Fax: +49 22 61 54 2-3 04 E-mail: investor@as-creation.de Internet: http://www.as-creation.de ISIN: DE000A1TNNN5 WKN: A1TNNN Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, München, Stuttgart End of News DGAP News-Service --------------------------------------------------------------------- 224051 05.08.2013