Announcement Össur hf. No. 15/2010
Reykjavik, 27 April 2010
GOOD PERFORMANCE IN FIRST QUARTER
Sales growth - Sales in the first quarter were strong and displayed a growth of 8% measured in local currency. Total sales amounted to USD 86 million compared to USD 77 million in the first quarter of 2009. Both major segments show growth, prosthetics 11% and bracing and supports 6%.
Profitability - Össur continues to deliver solid profitability. EBITDA amounted to USD 18 million or 21% of sales and the gross profit amounted to USD 54 million or 63% of sales. Net profit amounted to USD 10 million or 11% of sales increasing by 28% compared to the first quarter of 2009.
Jon Sigurdsson, President & CEO, comments:
"We are pleased with the results for the first quarter. Prosthetics continue to deliver strong growth and confirm the success of the bionic platform. We saw strong bracing and supports sales in the US giving us comfort that the right setup has been created in order to capitalize on the market opportunities in this segment. The product pipeline is exciting and in the quarter twelve new products were launched which is very important to fuel continued growth in both prosthetics and bracing and supports."
Key achievements in the first quarter:
Strong performance in bracing and supports sales in the US - Sales of bracing and supports products were good in the Americas in the first quarter, following significant changes that were made to the B&S organization. B&S sales in EMEA declined in the quarter.
Excellent performance in prosthetics - Sales of prosthetics in both the Americas and EMEA were strong. The success of the bionic product line continues and sales of bionic products were 12% of the prosthetics sales in the quarter.
Successful launches of new products - In the first quarter a total of twelve new products were launched, six prosthetics products and six bracing and supports products. The most important product launches were the Miami J collar, an important spinal product, and the Rebound Air Walker which has created excitement and is well received by the market.
Healthcare reforms - In the first quarter the US healthcare reforms were passed into law. The healthcare reforms will affect the Company's US operations, however the possible implications for Össur are uncertain as details of the reforms are still subject to change. The most important effects of the reforms are expected to materialize in 2013-2014.
Guidance - Based on the positive results for the first quarter, the management has revised previously announced guidance for the year. Revised guidance for 2010 is 4-6% organic LCY sales growth and over 10% organic LCY EBITDA growth, compared to previous guidance of 3-4% organic LCY sales growth and 8-10% LCY organic EBITDA growth.
Conference call at 12:00 CET/ 10:00 GMT/ 6:00 EST
Today, Tuesday 27 April 2010 Jon Sigurdsson, President and CEO, and Hjörleifur Palsson, CFO, will host a conference call for investors, analysts and shareholders presenting and discussing the results of the first quarter 2010. The conference call will be conducted in English and can be heard on Össur's website: www.ossur.com
To participate in the meeting please call one of the following telephone numbers:
Europe: + 44 (0) 207 509 5139
The United States: +1 718 354 1226
Iceland: 800 9313
Further information
| Jon Sigurdsson, President & CEO | Tel: +354 515 1300 |
| Hjorleifur Palsson, CFO | Tel: +354 515 1300 |
| Sigurborg Arnarsdottir, IR Manager | Tel: +354 664-1044 |
NOTE: This page only includes the higlights for the quarter. For the full press release please visit www.ossur.com/investors
