| The sia Group met its sales targets for 2007. Posting net sales of CHF 298.0 million (up 5.7%), the company can look back on its best year ever in terms of sales revenue. sia Abrasives confirms its EBIT margin forecast of 10% to 12%.
Supported by proximity to customers, product innovations and successful alliances, the sia Group continued to gain market share during the second half of 2007. The company posted full-year sales of CHF 298.0 million, an increase of 5.7%, meeting the sales growth target of 4% to 6%. Foreign currency translation had a positive impact of 1.6%. The upturn in sales was driven by good performance on all continents, except North America. The highest sales growth was recorded in Europe, where two-thirds of total sales are generated. Here, the collaboration with Sika AG bore fruit in particular: part GmbH, the sales company formed jointly with Sika at the end of 2006, achieved a marked increase in sales across Germany.
Given the solid growth, management expects the operating profit margin before interest and tax (EBIT margin) to fall within the guidance range of 10% to 12%.
Outlook
As long as the good economic climate continues during 2008, sia Abrasives is confident that its high-quality products and innovations will again provide the foundation to successfully address the market challenges during the current financial year.
Financial calendar
| 18. March 2008, 9 am |
Annual press conference at the SWX Swiss Exchange in Zurich |
| 18. March 2008, 11 am |
Analyst conference at the SWX Swiss Exchange in Zurich |
| 09. April 2008, 4 pm |
Annual General Meeting of Shareholders at Frauenfeld Stadtcasino |
About the sia GroupThe sia Group based in Frauenfeld ranks among the world's top three suppliers of coated abrasives. It develops, manufactures and markets complete abrasive systems tailored to specific requirements and applications for surface preparation and finishing of all kinds. This commitment has made sanding and grinding into true surface technologies. Employing some 1,100 people worldwide, sia Abrasives posted net sales of CHF 282 million and operating profit (EBIT) of CHF 31.5 million for 2006. sia Abrasives Holding AG is listed on the SWX Swiss Exchange and generates more than 90% of its sales outside Switzerland.
For further information
sia Abrasives Holding AG, Frauenfeld
Roland Eberle, CEO
Gerhard Mahrle, CFO
Phone: +41 52 724 45 75
Fax: +41 52 724 45 70
E-mail: ir@sia-abrasives.com
Internet: http://www.sia-abrasives.com/
® Correct nomenclature for sia Abrasives Holding AG
As there are other companies and organizations that use the same abbreviation as our company, we would be grateful if you could help to avoid any misunderstandings by always writing our name as follows: sia Abrasives (never just sia by itself). |
