STOCKHOLM, Sweden, October 24, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Sapa (Other OTC:SPKKF)
- Strengthened profit recovery despite continued weak market
- Earnings per share increased by 42 percent to 5.55 (3.90)
- Profit before tax amounted to MSEK 303 (219)
- Cash flow after investments continues to be strong, MSEK 250 (171)
- Strong balance sheet, net debt to equity down to 0.39 (0.46)
Sapa in brief July-Sept July-Sept Jan-Sept Jan-Sept
2002 2001 2002 2001
Net sales, MSEK1 2,642 2,718 8,401 8,865
Operating profit, MSEK1,2 114 60 351 359
Profit before tax, MSEK1,2 99 26 303 219
Operating margin, %1,2 4.3 2.2 4.2 4.1
Deliveries, tonnes1 69,190 63,760 215,150 214,620
Cash flow after investments, 93 161 250 171
MSEK3
Debt/equity ratio 0.39 0.46
1 Excluding Eurofoil and Autoplastics, which were divested in 2001
2 Excluding non-recurring items (see note, page 7 of full report)
3 Excluding company acquisition/divestment
Comparisons in accordance with the legal structure can be seen from
the tables on pages 6 and 7 (Full Report)
"In a continued weak market Sapa has managed to retain the positive profit trend which started during the first quarter of the year. The profit improvement seen in the third quarter comes from realised cost savings, but also from increased shares in several markets and a positive productivity development."
"The order intake during the third quarter gives no indication of an impending up-turn, which gives cause for some uncertainty about the end of the year," commented Staffan Bohman, President and CEO of Sapa.
For further information please contact: Staffan Bohman, CEO, tel. +46-8- 459 59 11 Bo Askvik, CFO, tel. +46-8-459 59 18 Gabriella Pihl, Communications Manager, tel. +46-8-459 59 62
This report is also available on Sapa's website: www.sapagroup.com. A slide presentation of this release can be downloaded as a PDF-file. Select Financial Information/Quarterly Reports.
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http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2002/10/24/20021024BIT00480/wkr0001.doc The full report http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2002/10/24/20021024BIT00480/wkr0002.pdf The full report