Glaston’s Interim Report 1 January – 31 March 2015: Net sales grew 28%, result improved

Glaston Corporation                      INTERIM REPORT                   23 April 2015 at 13.00 (EET)

GLASTON INTERIM REPORT 1 JANUARY – 31 MARCH 2015: Net sales grew 28%, result improved

This release is a summary of Glaston Corporation’s Interim Report for January-March 2015. The complete report is attached to this release as a pdf-file. The stock exchange release is also available on the company’s website at the address www.glaston.net.

KEY POINTS  JANUARY – MARCH 2015:

• Orders received in January-March totalled EUR 25.8 (26.4) million.
• The order book on 31 March 2015 was EUR 55.1 (41.3) million.
• Consolidated net sales in January-March totalled EUR 29.5 (23.1) million.
• EBITDA, excluding non-recurring items, was EUR 1.7 (0.4) million, i.e. 5.9 (1.7)% of net sales.
• The operating profit was EUR 0.8 (-0.7) million, i.e. 2.6 (-3.2)% of net sales.
• Return on capital employed (ROCE) was 15.3 (-3.7)%.
• Earnings per share were EUR 0.00 (-0.00).
• Glaston’s interest-bearing net debt totalled EUR -1.2 (9.0) million.
• Glaston expects that 2015 net sales and operating profit, excluding non-recurring items, will exceed the level of 2014 (in 2014, net sales were EUR 124.5 million and operating profit, excluding non-recurring items, was EUR 4.9 million).

PRESIDENT & CEO ARTO METSÄNEN:
“The positive development of Glaston's business continued during the first quarter of 2015. Our net sales grew by 27.7% compared with the corresponding period the previous year and totalled EUR 29.5 million. Our operating profit, excluding non-recurring items, was EUR 0.8 million, the first positive operating Q1 result since 2008.

Demand for our products continued to be strong, particularly in the North American area. After our good order intake in the final quarter of 2014, the situation in other markets levelled off and orders received in the first quarter of 2015 were at the previous year’s level.

Of the business areas, both Machines and Services increased their net sales. The Machines segment’s profitability growth continued to be a strong sign that our products and product development investments during recent years are fulfilling customers’ needs. In addition, our internal processes are developing positively. In the Services segment, profitability fell short of our targets to some extent, mainly due to our investments in developing the Glaston Care concept. In the longer term, this will make our relationship with our customers even closer.”
 

OPERATING ENVIRONMENT
In the first quarter of 2015, Glaston’s markets were reasonably active. Good development continued in North America and the EMEA area in both machines and service business. In South America and in Asia, markets were quiet. 

Machines
The Machines segment started 2015 with a good order book. Intake of new orders did not continue as briskly, however, during the first quarter. In January-March, customers’ activity declined slightly from the previous quarter, but was higher compared to the corresponding period the previous year.

In North America and the EMEA area, the positive development of the markets continued. In March, Glaston closed a deal worth approximately EUR 2 million with a prominent US glass fabricator for an FC500/RC350™ double chamber tempering line. The deal also included a Glaston Care service agreement.

In South America, the stable development of the market continued. In Asia, the market continued to be quiet, both in the Pacific area and in China. 

Services
The Services segment’s market developed positively in January-March. Glaston’s market position remained strong, in both heat treatment and pre-processing machine servicing. In Tools, competition continued to be aggressive. Due to successful customer tests, the company managed to get eminent customerships in Italy, Mexico and the USA.

In upgrade products, the first quarter was quieter than usual, due to an excellent order intake in the final quarter of 2014. Despite this, sales continued to be brisk in North America and the EMEA area. In the review period, Glaston closed significant upgrade product deals in the USA and Mexico. In South America and in Asia, the market situation remained difficult.

OUTLOOK
We continue to expect that the market will grow moderately in 2015. We expect growth, particularly in sales of heat treatment machines in the EMEA area and in North America. We expect that the stable development of the South American market will continue. The outlook for the Asian market remains good, despite a temporary setback. A cautious pick-up of the market was perceptible, however, at the end of the first quarter. We still expect the Asian market to recover in the second half of the year.

We expect that 2015 net sales and operating profit, excluding non-recurring items, will exceed the level of 2014 (in 2014, net sales were EUR 124.5 million and operating profit, excluding non-recurring items, was EUR 4.9 million).

PRESS MEETING
An analyst and press conference is organized at Glaston’s office on Yliopistonkatu 7, Helsinki, on 23 April 2015 at 14.00 p.m.


For further information, please contact:
President & CEO Arto Metsänen, tel. +358 10 500 6100
Chief Financial Officer Sasu Koivumäki, tel. +358 10 500 500

GLASTON CORPORATION
Agneta Selroos
Director, Communications and Marketing
 

Glaston Corporation
Glaston is a global company developing glass processing technology for architectural, solar, appliance and automotive applications. Our product portfolio ranges from pre-processing and safety glass machines to services. We are dedicated to our customers' continued success and provide services for all glass processing needs with a lifecycle-long commitment in mind. Further information is available at www.glaston.net. Glaston’s share (GLA1V) is listed on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki Small Cap List.

Distribution: NASDAQ OMX, key media, www.glaston.net