Financial results
for the first half of 2017
-
Order entry of CHF 291.2
million (H1 2016: CHF 250.6 million)
-
Sales of CHF 253.3 million
(H1 2016: CHF 235.3 million)
-
Growth of 8.0% in local
currencies or 7.7% in Swiss francs
-
Organic growth of 3.4% in local
currencies despite higher basis for comparison due to positive
one-time effect in the prior-year period
-
Strong growth in the Life
Sciences Business
-
Operating profit before
depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of CHF 41.3 million (H1
2016: CHF 37.9 million)
-
Net profit of CHF 25.7
million (H1 2016: CHF 23.5 million)
-
Cash flow from operating
activities of CHF 31.7 million (H1 2016: CHF 64.9
million; including a reimbursement of development costs)
-
Outlook for full-year 2017
confirmed
Operating
performance in the first half of 2017
-
Considerable progress with the
integration of SPEware Corporation (now Tecan SP, Inc.), which was
acquired in September 2016
-
Acquisition of Pulssar
Technologies S.A.S. in February 2017 to expand the technology
portfolio in the Partnering Business
-
Launch of a new platform
development project with DiaSorin in the Partnering
Business
Männedorf, Switzerland, August
16, 2017 - The Tecan Group (SIX Swiss Exchange: TECN) posted a
significant increase in order entry and strong sales growth in the
Life Sciences Business in the first half of 2017.
Tecan CEO David Martyr commented: "Tecan's sales
have developed well, once again, in the current financial year. The
strong growth in our end-customer business, the Life Sciences
Business, and in the components business, as part of the Partnering
Business, was particularly pleasing. In China we continued to
achieve high growth rates in both business segments. We were also
able to considerably improve our net profit despite the inclusion
of acquisition-related integration costs. Overall, the performance
is fully in line with our expectations."
Financial results for the first
half of 2017
Order entry increased by 16.7% in local currencies
to CHF 291.2 million in the first six months of the year (H1
2016: CHF 250.6 million), corresponding to a growth of 16.2%
in Swiss francs. Both business segments contributed with
double-digit growth rates. On an organic basis, excluding the new
companies SPEware (now Tecan SP, Inc.) and Pulssar Technologies
S.A.S., orders in the first half rose by 12.5% in local currencies
and by 12.0% in Swiss francs. SPEware has been consolidated in the
financial statements of the Tecan Group since October 2016; Pulssar
since March 2017 part of the Group, also making a small
contribution in the period under review. Due to strong order entry,
which exceeded sales considerably, the order backlog grew as of
June 30, 2017.
Sales climbed by 8.0% in local currencies or 7.7%
in Swiss francs to CHF 253.3 million in the first half of the
year (H1 2016: CHF 235.3 million). This corresponds to organic
growth of 3.4% in local currencies and 3.1% in Swiss francs
year-on-year. In the first half of 2016, the Partnering Business
benefited from a positive one-time effect as a corporate customer
placed the last major order for a phasing-out platform. The Life
Sciences Business again posted strong growth and was more than able
to offset this effect.
The operating profit before depreciation and
amortization (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and
amortization; EBITDA) rose by 8.8% to CHF 41.3 million in the
reporting period (H1 2016: CHF 37.9 million). The EBITDA
margin improved to 16.3% of sales (H1 2016: 16.1%) including
integration costs associated with acquisitions. The slight
improvement in margin, which was already achieved in the first six
months of the year, was driven by positive volume and price effects
as well as efficiency improvements in operations and in research
and development.
The net profit for the first half of 2017
increased by 9.6% to CHF 25.7 million (H1 2016: CHF 23.5
million) compared to the prior-year period, despite the booking of
slightly higher integration costs associated with the acquisitions
of Sias, SPEware and Pulssar. The net profit margin in the first
half of 2017 reached 10.1% of sales (H1 2016: 10.0%), while
earnings per share were CHF 2.22 (H1 2016: CHF 2.04)
The cash flow from operating activities was
CHF 31.7 million and below the same period of 2016, during
which a further partial reimbursement of development costs by an
OEM partner was booked (H1 2016: CHF 64.9 million), thus, cash
flow from operating activities corresponded to 12.5 % of sales in
the first six months of 2017.
Information by business
segment
Life Sciences
Business (end-customer business)
Sales in the Life Sciences Business increased by 18.2% in local
currencies to CHF 138.2 million (H1 2016: CHF 117.7
million) in the first half of the year and were 17.4% above the
prior-year period in Swiss francs. On an organic basis, excluding
first-time consolidation of sales by SPEware (now Tecan SP), the
revenue in the first half of 2017 rose by 9.5% in local currencies.
Growth was broad based, with contributions from a broad range of
instrument platforms, the service business and further strong
growth in consumables. Amongst the regions, China again stood out
with a high growth rate. Order entry in the Life Sciences Business
grew in line with sales, both in organic terms and including Tecan
SP.
Operating profit in this segment rose by 46.5% to
CHF 17.8 million (H1 2016: CHF 12.2 million). This
positive performance is primarily a result of sales growth as well
as further efficiency gains. The operating profit margin improved
by 250 basis points to 12.4% of sales (H1 2016: 9.9%).
Partnering Business (OEM business)
The Partnering Business generated sales of CHF 115.1 million
during the period under review (H1 2016: CHF 117.6 million),
which corresponds to a decline of 2.1% in local currencies and in
Swiss francs against the high base level in the prior-year period,
when sales development benefited from the last major order for an
expiring instrument platform. The absence of sales of the
phased-out instrument platform was almost offset by new instrument
platforms as well as strong growth in the components business,
services and consumables. By contrast, order entry in the
Partnering Business increased at a double-digit percentage rate in
the first half of 2017. The acquisition of Pulssar technologies,
which has been consolidated in the financial statements since March
1, 2017, had only a limited impact on sales. On an organic basis,
excluding sales by Pulssar, revenue in the first half of 2017 fell
by 2.6% year-on-year in local currencies.
The segment's operating profit in the period under
review was CHF 19.0 million (H1 2016: CHF 20.9 million).
The operating profit margin was down on the prior-year period at
16.4% of sales (H1 2016: 17.7%) mainly due to the lower sales
volume and the product mix.
Additional information
Regional
development
In Europe, sales in the first six months of 2017
fell by 13.1% in local currencies and by 14.0% in Swiss francs
compared to the same period last year. This development was mainly
due to the positive one-time effect in the Partnering Business in
the prior-year period and the associated high comparative base. By
contrast, the Life Sciences Business recorded strong growth in this
region.
In North America, sales in the first half grew by
31.7% in local currencies and by 33.0% in Swiss francs. The Life
Sciences Business posted strong growth in this region as a result
of both a solid organic increase in sales and the first-time
contribution of SPEware products. The Partnering Business also
generated significant double-digit growth here, including a strong
contribution from the components business.
In Asia, Tecan achieved an overall considerable
increase in sales of 16.1% in local currencies and 15.0% in Swiss
francs. Both segments contributed with a double-digit rise in
sales, driven once again by a particularly strong growth in
China.
Recurring sales
of services and consumables
Recurring sales of services and consumables increased in the first
half of 2017 by 26.0% in local currencies and 25.5% in Swiss
francs, supported both by strong organic growth and the first-time
contribution of SPEware consumables. Recurring sales therefore
amounted to 44.7% of total sales (H1 2016: 38.3%), their highest
level to date. Services (including spare parts) accounted for 23.1%
of total sales, while consumables (plastics and reagents) accounted
for 21.6%.
Operating
performance in the first half of 2017
Tecan made considerable progress with the
integration of US-based SPEware Corporation (now Tecan SP, Inc.) in
the first half of 2017. The company, which was acquired in
September 2016, is a leading provider for mass spectrometry sample
preparation solutions. Preparations were made during the period
under review for joint marketing of solutions in which established
Tecan automation platforms and Tecan SP technologies complement one
another perfectly. Tecan SP products were previously mainly
successful in North America and in the future will benefit from the
Tecan Group's strong global distribution structure. The European
marketing launch is scheduled for the second half of 2017.
Tecan also made good progress with the integration
of the French company Pulssar Technologies S.A.S., which was
acquired in March 2017. Pulssar precision pumps expand the
technology portfolio of Tecan's component business in the
Partnering Business and meet application-specific customer needs in
various market segments. Preparations are currently underway to
relocate Pulssar production from Paris to San Jose, California,
where Tecan traditionally develops and manufactures components.
As announced at the end of June, Tecan is
launching a joint project in its Partnering Business with Italian
partner DiaSorin to develop a new platform. The new platform will
provide a complete sample to result system for molecular
diagnostics. Under the project, DiaSorin will make use of Tecan's
Fluent® Laboratory
Automation Solution as its nucleic acid extraction platform.
DiaSorin is among the global leaders in diagnostics.
Strong balance
sheet - high equity ratio
Tecan's equity ratio reached 67.9% as of June 30,
2017 (December 31, 2016: 66.2%). Net liquidity (cash and cash
equivalents minus bank liabilities and loans) reached
CHF 243.9 million (December 31, 2016: CHF 242.3 million).
The company's share capital was CHF 1,164,778 as at the
reporting date of June 30, 2017 (December 31, 2016:
CHF 1,154,137), consisting of 11,647,777 registered shares
with a nominal value of CHF 0.10.
At the Tecan Group Annual General Meeting on April 11, 2017,
shareholders approved an unchanged dividend of CHF 1.75 per
share. The payout of dividends of CHF 20.3 million in total
took place on April 19, 2017.
Outlook for full-year 2017
confirmed
For fiscal year 2017, Tecan continues to anticipate Group sales
growth of more than 6% in local currencies. The reported EBITDA
margin is still expected to expand to over 18% of sales, including
acquisition-related costs in a mid-single-digit million Swiss franc
amount.
These expectations regarding profitability are
based on an average exchange rate forecast for full-year 2017 of
one euro equaling CHF 1.07 and one US dollar equaling
CHF 0.99 and exclude contributions from future
acquisitions.
Financial Report and
Webcast
The full 2017 Interim Report can be
accessed on the company's website www.tecan.com under Investor
Relations. An iPad app for the Tecan Financial Reports is also
available from the App Store.
Tecan will hold a conference call to
discuss the results for the first half of 2017 today at
10:00 a.m. (CEST). The presentation will also be relayed by
live audio webcast, which interested parties can access at
www.tecan.com. A link to the webcast will be provided immediately
prior to the event.
The dial-in numbers for the
conference call are as follows:
For participants from Europe: +41 (0)58 310 50 00 or +44 (0)203 059
5862 (UK)
For participants from the US: +1 (1) 631 570 5613
Participants should if possible dial in 15 minutes before the start
of the event.
Key upcoming dates
-
The 2017 Annual Report will be published on
March 14, 2018.
-
The Annual General Meeting of Tecan's
shareholders will take place on April 17, 2018.
About
Tecan
Tecan (www.tecan.com) is a leading global provider of laboratory
instruments and solutions in biopharmaceuticals, forensics and
clinical diagnostics. The company specializes in the development,
production and distribution of automated workflow solutions for
laboratories in the life sciences sector. Its clients include
pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, university research
departments, and forensic and diagnostic laboratories. As an
original equipment manufacturer (OEM), Tecan is also a leader in
developing and manufacturing OEM instruments and components that
are then distributed by partner companies. Founded in Switzerland
in 1980, the company has manufacturing, research and development
sites in both Europe and North America and maintains a sales and
service network in 52 countries. In 2016, Tecan generated sales of
CHF 506 million (USD 511 million;
EUR 464 million). Registered shares of Tecan Group are
traded on the SIX Swiss Exchange (TECN; ISIN CH0012100191).
For further
information:
Tecan Group |
|
Dr.
Rudolf Eugster |
Martin
Brändle |
Chief
Financial Officer |
Vice
President, Communications &
Investor Relations |
investor@tecan.com |
Tel. +41
(0) 44 922 84 30 |
www.tecan.com |
Fax +41
(0) 44 922 88 89 |
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