DGAP-News: HELLA GmbH & Co. KGaA: HELLA achieves significant sales and earnings increase in the first half of the fiscal year 2017/2018

HELLA achieves significant sales and earnings increase
in the first half of the fiscal year 2017/2018

- Currency-adjusted sales increase of 9.3 percent in the first half of the fiscal year; reported sales growth of 8.0 percent to EUR 3.5 billion

- Adjusted EBIT improves by 9.3 percent to EUR 293 million; adjusted EBIT margin increases to 8.5 percent

- Long-term expansion of the global HELLA network: Numerous new locations are planned in international target markets

- A substantial increase in sales in the Automotive segment (+9.1 percent) supports Group-wide growth; Special Applications contribute to increase in sales and earnings

- Positive company outlook confirmed after the first half of the fiscal year

Lippstadt, 11 January 2018. HELLA GmbH & Co. KGaA, one of the leading global automotive suppliers of lighting and electronics, closed out the first half of the current fiscal year 2017/2018 (1 June to 30 November 2017) with a substantial increase in sales and improved profitability. The consolidated sales for the first half of the fiscal year increased over the previous year by 9.3 percent after currency adjustments. Taking negative exchange rates into consideration, reported sales improved by 8.0 percent to EUR 3.5 billion (previous year: EUR 3.2 billion). The adjusted earnings before interest and taxes (adjusted EBIT) increased by 9.3 percent to EUR 293 million (previous year: EUR 268 million); the adjusted EBIT margin thus increased to 8.5 percent (previous year: 8.4 percent). Taking special effects into account, reported earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) rose by 18.1 percent to EUR 290 million (prior year: EUR 245 million). The reported EBIT margin is therefore 8.4 percent (previous year: 7.7 percent).

"The substantial increase in our Group-wide sales in the first half of the fiscal year once again shows that, thanks to our innovative, sophisticated product solutions, we have positioned ourselves strategically well with respect to key automotive market trends," said HELLA CEO Dr. Rolf Breidenbach. "We also benefited from excellent business development in the second quarter."

Long-term expansion of the international HELLA network

In the current fiscal year, HELLA is investing in the long-term expansion of the international production and development network. To this end, HELLA is currently building new electronics plants in India, Mexico and Lithuania and is further expanding the existing production site in Shanghai. In the lighting business division, HELLA recently put a new plant of the joint venture Beijing HELLA BHAP Automotive Lighting into operation. This plant is located near the metropolitan area of Tianjin. Investments are also being made in Germany. At the company headquarters in the Westphalian town of Lippstadt, HELLA is building a new administrative, visitor and exhibition center and is working with other partners to open a Digital Innovation Campus.

A substantial increase in sales in the Automotive segment is contributing to Group-wide growth

The Group-wide increase in sales in the first half of the fiscal year was supported primarily by the Automotive segment. Due to numerous production ramp-ups and strong demand for innovative lighting and electronics solutions, reported segment sales increased by 9.1 percent over the previous year to EUR 2.7 billion (previous year:
EUR 2.4 billion). In the first half of the fiscal year, the adjusted EBIT for the Automotive segment increased by 4.5 percent to EUR 238 million (previous year: EUR 227 million); as a result, the adjusted EBIT margin was 9.0 percent (previous year: 9.4 percent). Reported earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of the segment in the half year increase by 4.0 percent to EUR 236 million (prior year: EUR 227 million). The EBIT margin is therefore 8.9 percent (previous year: 9.4 percent).

Positive business development in independent aftermarket and wholesale distribution

In the first half of the fiscal year, sales in the third-party aftermarket segment increased by 3.6 percent. Sales growth was driven largely by the good business development in the independent aftermarket and wholesale distribution segments. In terms of total sales, the reported segment sales value of EUR 611 million is slightly above the previous year's sales (previous year: EUR 610 million). In terms of the earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT), in the first half of the fiscal year, the aftermarket segment achieved the sales of the previous year (EUR 37 million). As was the case in the previous year, the reported EBIT margin was 6.1 percent.

Special Applications segment boasts a substantial increase in sales and result

In the first six months of the current fiscal year, the Special Applications segment achieved a substantial sales and result increase. Total segments sales increased by 13.0 percent to EUR 211 million (previous year: EUR 187 million) due to high demand for product solutions for agricultural and construction vehicles. In the first half of the fiscal year, the reported EBIT of the segment improved substantially, increasing to
EUR 24 million (previous year: EUR 5 million); as a result, the EBIT margin increased to 11.2 percent (previous year: 2.6 percent).

Positive company outlook confirmed for the fiscal year 2017/2018

HELLA confirms a positive company outlook for the entire year. "We expect to continue to experience stronger growth than the automotive market as a whole during this current fiscal year due to our good strategic positioning," said Dr. Rolf Breidenbach. For fiscal year 2017/2018 (1 June 2017 to 31 May 2018), HELLA is forecasting currency-adjusted sales growth and an increase in the adjusted EBIT of 5 to 10 percent over the previous year. The forecast value for the adjusted EBIT margin continues to be approximately 8 percent for this period.  

Selected key financial indicators (in EUR million or as a percentage of sales):

	H1 2017/2018	H1 2016/2017	Change
Sales	3,452	3,198	+8.0%
Adjusted earnings before interest and taxes (adjusted EBIT)	293	268	+9.3%
Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT)	290	245	+18.1%
Adjusted EBIT margin	8.5%	8.4%	+0.1 pp
EBIT margin	8.4%	7.7%	+0.7 pp

 

Where sums and percentages have been rounded, differences may arise as a result of commercial rounding.

The six month report for the fiscal year 2017/2018 is now available on the HELLA GmbH & Co. KGaA website.

 

Please note:
This text and corresponding photo material can also be found in our press database at:
www.hella.com/press

HELLA GmbH & Co. KGaA, Lippstadt: HELLA is a global, family-owned company, listed on the stock exchange, with around 40,000 employees at over 125 locations in some 35 countries. The HELLA Group develops and manufactures products for lighting technology and electronics for the automotive industry and also has one of the largest retail organizations for automotive parts, accessories, diagnostics, and services within Europe. With nearly 7,000 people working in research and development, HELLA is one of the most important innovation drivers on the market. Furthermore, with sales of 6.6 billion euros in the fiscal year of 2016/2017, the HELLA Group is one of the top 40 automotive parts suppliers in the world and one of the 100 largest German industrial companies.

For additional information please contact:
Dr. Markus Richter
Company spokesman
HELLA GmbH & Co. KGaA
Rixbecker Strasse 75
59552 Lippstadt
Germany
Phone: +49 (0)2941 38-7545
Fax: +49 (0)2941 38-477545
Markus.Richter@hella.com
www.hella.com