Glaston Oyj Abp - Interim report (Q1 and Q3)

Glaston Interim Report January-September 2014: Positive profitability development continued; new machine market picking up

Helsinki, Finland, 2014-10-28 12:00 CET (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Glaston Corporation
                       INTERIM REPORT                        28 October 2014 at
13.00 (EET) 

Glaston Interim Report January-September 2014: Positive profitability
development continued; new machine market 
picking up

Glaston Corporation is adopting a new disclosure procedure in accordance with
Regulations and Guidelines 7/2013 (disclosure obligation on issuers) of the
Financial Supervisory Authority and is publishing the interim report for
January-September 2014 as an attachment to this stock exchange release. Glaston
Corporation's interim report for January-September 2014 is a PDF file
attachment to this stock exchange release and is available on the company's
website at the address www.glaston.net. 

KEY POINTS  JANUARY -  SEPTEMBER    2014

  -- Orders received in January-September totalled EUR 89.6 (90.0) million.
     Orders received in the third quarter were EUR 34.1 (34.2) million.
  -- The order book on 30 September 2014 was EUR 43.1 (42.0) million.
  -- Consolidated net sales in January-September totalled EUR 83.8 (86.4)
     million. Third-quarter net sales were EUR 25.5 (26.3) million.
  -- EBITDA was EUR 5.1 (7.5) million, i.e. 6.1 (8.6)% of net sales.
  -- The operating result, excluding non-recurring items, in January-September
     was a profit of EUR 2.4 (0.3) million, i.e. 2.9 (0.3)% of net sales. The
     third-quarter operating result, excluding non-recurring items, was a profit
     of EUR 1.1 (0.4 loss) million, i.e. 4.3 (-1.6)% of net sales.
  -- The operating result in January-September was a profit of EUR 1.8 (4.0)
     million, i.e. 2.1 (4.7)% of net sales. The third-quarter operating result
     was a profit of EUR 1.1 (0.4 loss), i.e. 4.3 (-1.7)%.
  -- Continuing Operations' return on capital employed (ROCE) was 4.9 (10.5)%.
  -- Continuing Operations' January-September earnings per share were EUR 0.00
     (0.02). Continuing and Discontinued Operations' earnings per share totalled
     EUR 0.00 (0.02).
  -- Glaston's interest-bearing net debt totalled EUR 9.5 (11.4) million.



PRESIDENT & CEO ARTO METSÄNEN:
“The third quarter was good in terms of profitability and was another step in
the right direction. Our systematic measures to improve profitability are
therefore yielding results. After the first quarter of 2013, the operating
result excluding non-recurring items has improved in every quarter compared
with the corresponding period the previous year, except for the first quarter
of 2014. The third-quarter operating profit of EUR 1.1 million was
significantly better than the comparison period, and was 4.3% of net sales. The
result does not yet correspond with our financial targets, but we are
approaching that level. 

We still expect our net sales to grow compared with last year, even though the
early part of the year was challenging. A recovery is perceptible in the
market, however, and our order book is at a slightly higher level than last
year. 

In the review period, we made an acquisition in line with our strategy by
purchasing the industrial property rights of Glassrobots. This acquisition
opens up for us a number of new opportunities. Firstly, we can take advantage
of the company's installed machine base by providing maintenance and spare
parts services for it, and we have already received significant spare parts
orders. In addition, the tempering technology of the acquired company is well
respected in the particularly demanding customer segment. We continuously
monitor the situation of operators in our industry, and other opportunities for
specific acquisitions to support our strategy may arise.” 

GLASTON'S OUTLOOK FOR 2014 UNCHANGED
Glaston expects that 2014 net sales and operating profit, excluding
non-recurring items, will grow. 





KEY FIGURES                                     30.9.2014  30.9.2013  31.12.2013
Order book, EUR million                         43.1       42.0       39.1      
Orders, received, EUR million                   89.6       90.0       123.3     
Net sales, EUR million                          83.8       86.4       122.2     
EBITDA, EUR million                             5.1        7.5        10.5      
EBITDA, as % of net sales                       6.1        8.6        8.6       
Operating result (EBIT), EUR million            1.8        4.0        5.9       
Operating result (EBIT), as % of net sales      2.1        4.7        4.8       
Profit / loss for the period, EUR million       0.5        3.0        1.3       
Earnings per share, EUR                         0.00       0.02       0.01      
Net cash flow from operating activities         0.7        3.3        7.1       
Return on capital employed, %, annualized       4.9        10.5       9.9       
Gross capital expenditure, continuing and       2.1        2.0        2.8       
 discontinued operations, EUR million                                           
Equity ratio, %                                 47.5       46.6       45.4      
Gearing, %                                      42.5       49.8       49.3      



OPERATING ENVIRONMENT
The new machines market continued to develop positively in the third quarter of
2014. In North America and Europe, machine business picked up significantly
compared with the previous quarter. The stable development of the service
market continued, with profitability remaining good. 

In the Machines segment, the positive development that began in the second
quarter strengthened in the third quarter. In North America, the market
continued to be active, and in the EMEA area a pick-up was perceptible on a
broad front. The USA's share of new heat treatment machine orders was
significant. Orders intake and profitability development were promoted by a
weakening of the euro against the US dollar. The positive development of
Central European countries continued, with demand strongly directed at heat
treatment machines. In South America, the market continued to be challenging
for both pre-processing and heat treatment machines. In Asia, the market
development was more subdued than expected. Demand for pre-processing and heat
treatment machines was unsatisfactory in both China and in the Pacific area. 

In the service market, Glaston's position remained strong in the third quarter
despite a rather weak market situation. Inertia was evident in sales of heat
treatment machine spare parts and upgrade products. In North America,
development of sales of pre-processing machine spare parts was unsatisfactory,
while sales of heat treatment machine spare parts continue to be strong. In the
EMEA area, sales of heat treatment machine spare parts developed according to
plan, with the exception of Turkey and Russia. In Asia, demand for spare parts
continued to be weak in the third quarter. In North America, revived sales of
new machines were strongly reflected in sales of upgrade products. In other
areas, too, there was a perceptible slowing of demand for upgrade products.
Sales of maintenance work advanced according to plan. 

OUTLOOK
Glaston still expects the market overall to grow moderately in 2014. In North
America and the EMEA area, the positive market development is expected to
continue during the latter part of the year. In Asia, and particularly in
China, overcapacity and slowing office construction is weakening demand for
glass processing machines. In South America, we anticipate that the market will
continue to be relatively subdued during the latter part of the year, with
demand remaining at a low level. 

The safety glass market, which is Glaston's main field of business, is expected
to grow by nearly 7% per year up to 2017. In addition, the company is seeking
to grow particularly in tools and in services covering the entire lifecycle of
products. Drivers of Glaston's profitability development and growth include a
pick-up of demand in the construction industry, growing demand for safety glass
as well as energy-efficient and high quality glass solutions, and growth of
solar energy production. 

Glaston expects that 2014 net sales and operating profit, excluding
non-recurring items, will grow. 

PRESS MEETING
An analyst and press conference is organized at Glaston's office on
Yliopistonkatu 7, Helsinki, on 28 October 2014 at 14.00 p.m. 

DISCLOSURE PROCEDURE
Glaston Corporation is adopting a new disclosure procedure in accordance with
Regulations and Guidelines 7/2013 (disclosure obligation on issuers) of the
Financial Supervisory Authority and is publishing the interim report for
January-September 2014 as an attachment to this stock exchange release. Glaston
Corporation's interim report for January-September 2014 is a PDF file
attachment to this stock exchange release and is available on the company's
website at the address www.glaston.net. 

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

Attachments:

Glaston Q3_2014_EN.pdf