100-YEAR-OLD YIT SEEKS PROFITABLE GROWTH IN RUSSIA – RINGS THE OPENING BELL AT NASDAQ, NEW YORK
12/4/2012 7:00 AM EST
YIT
Investor News
100-YEAR-OLD YIT SEEKS PROFITABLE GROWTH IN RUSSIA – RINGS THE OPENING BELL AT
NASDAQ, NEW YORK
Helsinki, 2012-12-04 13:00 CET (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- YIT Corporation
INVESTOR NEWS December 4, 2012 at 14:00 p.m.
100-YEAR-OLD YIT SEEKS PROFITABLE GROWTH IN RUSSIA – RINGS THE OPENING BELL AT
NASDAQ, NEW YORK
YIT meets its shareholders and investors on a road show in early December in
New York, Boston and Montreal, and it will ring the opening bell at the Nasdaq
Stock Exchange on December 4, 2012 at 9:15 a.m. local time (4:15 p.m. Finnish
time).
YIT has grown strongly in the 2000s: the company’s revenue has more than
tripled and operating profit more than doubled. The development and potential
of Russia is one of the key themes at the meetings with investors.
YIT has expanded its operations into eight new cities in the Moscow region
Housing construction in Russia offers YIT significant growth and profitability
potential in the long term. The company has operated in Russia for over 50
years and seen both upturns and downturns. During the last year, YIT has
expanded into eight new cities in the Moscow region.
“Our business operations in Russia are beginning to meet the high objectives
set for them. International Construction Services was the most profitable
segment of our group in terms of operating profit margin during the third
quarter. A foundation for even better development has been created,” CFO Timo
Lehtinen says.
”The number of residential units under construction has increased by
approximately 40% in a year, but invested capital by under 20%. The use of
capital has become significantly more efficient, and the segment aims to reach
the Group’s objective of a 20% return on capital employed during the next three
to five years,” Lehtinen concludes.
Individualism matters for Russian customers
YIT is one of the largest Western construction companies in Russia. ”The growth
in the volume of housing construction is supported by the growing middle
class’s great need for improved quality of housing, the favourable development
of the mortgage market and the increase in the number of households,” says
Hanna-Maria Heikkinen, Vice President, Investor Relations.
In Russia, customers have traditionally purchased their homes unfinished and
finished them themselves.
“Even though individualism is still very important to Russians, our customers
increasingly want to buy finished residential units,” Heikkinen comments.
YIT’s reputation as a reliable construction company in Russia improved
significantly during the financial crisis, with the company continuing the
construction of all of its projects as planned. As proof of good development,
the company has won several quality awards in construction in Russia.
Order backlog of EUR 1.5 billion in Construction Services Finland gives
visibility for 2013 as well
In Construction Services Finland, the market situation in housing construction
continues to be good. Population growth and increase in the number of
households, low interest rates and migration to cities will support the demand
for housing in the coming years as well. The strong order backlog of
Construction Services Finland lays the foundation for success also in 2013.
Focus of Building Services is on improving profitability
The market situation of Building Services is challenging, especially in the
project business: decision-making by the customers has been postponed due to
macroeconomic uncertainty. The focus of YIT’s operations is on improving
profitability: Building Services Northern Europe aim for cost-savings of EUR 40
million from 2013 onwards. The aim of the Building Services Central Europe
segment is to improve its operating profit margin at a rate of one percentage
point per year. In the long term, opportunities for business growth are
supported by the increasing amount of technology in buildings and customer’s
needs for ensuring the functioning of increasingly complicated systems.
Live webcast of ringing the opening bell is available on the NASDAQ web site
(http://www.nasdaq.com/marketsite/marketsite_events.stm). The webcast starts at
4:15 p.m. Finnish time (EEST).
Additional information:
Hanna-Maria Heikkinen, Vice President, Investor Relations, +358 408262172
YIT Corporation
Hanna-Maria Heikkinen
Vice President, Investor Relations
Distribution: NASDAQ OMX, principal media, www.yitgroup.com
YIT celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2012. The company was established in
the Grand Duchy of Finland in 1912. Today, YIT is a leading European service
company in building systems, construction services and services for industry.
Our 26,000 professionals serve customers in 14 countries in the Nordic and
Baltic countries, Russia and Central Europe. We have grown together with our
customers and developed our services in line with the changes taking place in
different societies. We intend to continue on that track. Our vision is to lead
the way in creating and maintaining good living environments. In 2011, YIT’s
revenue was approximately EUR 4.4 billion. YIT’s shares are listed on NASDAQ
OMX Helsinki. www.yitgroup.com