- Consolidated sales rises by 41.5 percent to EUR 94.4 million
- EBITDA rises by 108.4 percent to EUR 11.4 million
- Attractive market environment creates opportunities for further acquisitions in 2017

Munich, 20 March 2017 - Ringmetall AG (ISIN: DE0006001902), a leading global specialist in the packaging industry, achieved significant growth as expected in 2016. Consolidated sales revenues rose by 41.5 percent in the past year to EUR 94.4 million (2015: EUR 66.7 million). The gross margin declined slightly to 43.7 percent (2015: 46.8%). At EUR 11.4 million, earnings before taxes, interest, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) more than doubled over the previous year (2015: EUR 5.5 million). Earnings before taxes und interest (EBIT) soared to EUR 6.4 million (2015: EUR 1.4 million).

The preliminary key business performance data for 2016 are listed below:

EUR (thousands)	2016	2015	Change
Sales revenues	94,345	66,678	41.5%
Gross profit	41,413	31,209	32.7%
EBITDA	11,359	5,451	108.4%
EBITDA margin	12.0%	8.2%
EBIT	6,387	1,385	361.2%
EBIT margin	6.8%	2.1%

 

In the core business unit Industrial Packaging, the American subsidiary Self Industries, acquired at the end of 2015, played a major role in the sales growth of the Group. Division sales revenues rose by 54.2 percent to EUR 79.1 million (2015: EUR 51.3 million), while the division EBITDA increased by 112.5 percent to EUR 11.8 million (2015: EUR 5.5 million). As expected, the Self business operations were seamlessly integrated in the corporate structure of the Ringmetall Group in 2016. This was reflected directly in a significant increase in the result of the American subsidiary. An improved cost-of-materials ratio, achieved via optimized purchasing conditions for raw materials, was one of the primary drivers behind the growth in earnings.

Cost reduction measures implemented in the Industrial Handling division produced a positive contribution to the division result starting in the third quarter of the past fiscal year, after several quarters of declining figures. "Unfortunately, the positive trend was not as strong through the fourth quarter," explained Christoph Petri, Spokesman of the Management Board of the Ringmetall Group. "However, we expect business performance to stabilize in 2017." At EUR 15.3 million, division sales revenues were slightly below those of the previous year (2015: EUR 15.4 million), with EBITDA nearly unchanged from the previous year at EUR 0.6 million (2015: EUR 0.6 million). In conjunction with the exploration of further potential for process optimization, the Management Board of the Ringmetall Group recently initiated measures that are currently being implemented. The company will publish more information about these activities in the second quarter.

The positive trend throughout the Group is also reflected by the regional business performance. In Germany, sales consistently continued to rise. Improved conditions for purchasing steel simultaneously contributed to a slightly disproportionate increase in the result. The situation in the American market is similar, although the results of optimization were significantly better due to the initial implementation of numerous packages of proven measures. In the Italian market, the internal business performance forecasts were substantially exceeded with regard to both sales and results. Here as well, the optimization of purchasing conditions resulted in a disproportionate increase in the margins, which however were partially offset by higher costs for purchased services. In Turkey, double-digit growth figures were achieved, contributing to a significant improvement in the subsidiary's results. In China, a substantial increase in sales was posted, particularly at the end of the year. Sales and earnings figures reached new records in December.

"We are currently in a very comfortable situation and are very pleased with the business development in the past fiscal year," said Christoph Petri in conclusion. "In 2017, we want to take advantage of the attractive market environment and continue to grow both organically and through acquisitions." For the full fiscal year 2017, the Management Board of Ringmetall Group expects an organic increase in sales to EUR 98.0 - 103.0 million as well as a rise in EBITDA to EUR 11.5 - 13.0 million.

Further information about the Ringmetall Group and its affiliated subsidiaries is available at www.ringmetall.de.

Contact:

Ingo Middelmenne
Investor Relations
Ringmetall AG

Phone: +49 (0)89 45 220 98 12
E-mail: middelmenne@ringmetall.de

About Ringmetall Group

Ringmetall is an internationally leading specialist in the packaging industry. The Industrial Packaging business segment offers highly secure gasket and locking systems for the chemical, the petrochemical and the pharmaceutical industry as well as the food industry. The Industrial Handling business segment develops application-optimized vehicle accessory parts for the handling and transport of packaging units. Besides its headquarters in Munich, Ringmetall has worldwide production and sales subsidiaries in Germany, Great Britain, Spain, Italy, Turkey, the Netherlands, as well as in China and the USA. On a global scale, Ringmetall generates revenues of more than EUR 90 million per year.