ÅF AB Interim Report January - March 2012
For further information, please contact:
President and CEO, Jonas Wiström, +46 70 608 12 20
CFO Stefan Johansson, +46 70 224 24 01
Director, Corporate Information, Viktor Svensson, +46 70 657 20 26
First quarter 2012
* Net sales totalled SEK 1,407 million (1,240)
* Operating profit totalled SEK 127 million (100)
* Operating margin was 9.0 percent (8.1)
* Earnings per share, before dilution: SEK 2.72 (2.27)
A few words from the President, Jonas Wiström:
ÅF's operating profit rose to SEK 127 million and the overall operating margin
was 9.0 percent (8.1). One important reason behind this improvement is the fact
that the Infrastructure Division improved its earnings by more than 70 percent
in the first quarter of the year and reported an operating margin of 11.9
percent (7.8).
Thanks in part to ÅF's strong market position and the relatively stable state of
the market in the Nordic countries, three of the company's four divisions
(Infrastructure, Industry and Technology) were able to report first-quarter
operating margins in excess of 11 percent.
The Energy Division, however, continued to underperform in terms of
profitability. This is mainly as a result of low levels of capacity utilisation
in the nuclear power sector and reduced profits from the division's operations
in Russia.
A strategic decision was made in the first quarter to improve profitability in
ÅF's international operations by dividing the Energy Division into an
International North and an International South Division with effect from 1
April. This new structure will create a clearer and stronger market focus for
the entire portfolio of ÅF services.
The increase in the ÅF Group's profits and a reduction in working capital each
played their part in contributing to a strong improvement in cash flow.
Growth for the Group totalled 13 percent overall, with organic growth accounting
for 12 percent.
In the Nordic markets ÅF continued to enjoy a good level of demand for its
services and the influx of new orders was brisk. One clear trend over the past
year is ÅF's continually improving ability to win contracts for increasingly
large projects with clients such as the Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste
Management Company (SKB), Skanska Healthcare, the Swedish Transport
Administration and Femern A/S in Denmark.
ÅF is proceeding with its policy of selective recruitment and interest in
working for ÅF has never been greater. In Universum's first-quarter survey of
engineering students, ÅF was ranked in sixth place (7) among Sweden's most
attractive companies to work for. This makes ÅF the students' favourite
technical consulting company, a status it has already attained among technology
professionals, for whom it is now Sweden's second most popular employer (3)
overall. This good reputation extends beyond the borders of Sweden, with ÅF
enjoying a place among Europe's Top 50 companies in terms of the appeal it holds
for employees. This is a factor of crucial significance for ÅF's success in
attracting the very best technical consultants in the business.
Our fundamental objectives remain unchanged: to continue to generate levels of
profitability that place us among the very best performers in our industry, and
to grow our business by approximately 15 percent a year. The ambition is to
expand through organic and acquired growth in more or less equal measure. To
this end, a strong balance sheet provides a firm platform on which to build for
future acquisitions.
Group Head Office:
ÅF AB (publ), SE-169 99 Stockholm, Sweden
Visitors' address: Frösundaleden 2, 169 70 Solna, Sweden
Tel. +46 10 505 00 00 Fax +46 10 505 00 10
www.afconsult.com / info@afconsult.com
Corporate ID number 556120-6474
This interim report has not been subjected to scrutiny by the company's
auditors.
The information in this interim report fulfils ÅF AB's disclosure re-quirements
under the provisions of the Swedish Securities Markets Act and/or the Financial
Instruments Trading Act. The information was released for publication at 10:15
CET on 7 May 2012.
All assumptions about the future that are made in this report are based on the
best information available to the company at the time the report was written. As
is the case with all assessments of the future, such assumptions are subject to
risks and uncertainties, which may mean that the actual outcome differs from the
anticipated result.
This is a translation of the Swedish original. The Swedish text is the binding
version and shall prevail in the event of any discrepancies.
The full report including tables (pdf) is available for download