EQS-News: AT&S Austria Technologie & Systemtechnik AG / Key word(s):
Quarter Results/9 Month figures
AT&S maintains revenue at prior-year level
04.02.2025 / 07:01 CET/CEST
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
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AT&S maintains revenue at prior-year level
• At € 1,197 million, revenue in the first three quarters of 2024/25
remained at the prior-year level
• Revenue of € 397 million in Q3 2024/25 was at the same level as in Q3
2023/24 and seasonally 12% lower than in Q2 2024/25
• Closing of sale of AT&S Korea finalized on January 31, 2025
• Cost optimization and efficiency program as well as review of
investments intensified
• Dr. Riedl takes over Supervisory Board chairmanship
• Medium-term forecast adjusted in December due to market environment
Leoben – AT&S maintained its revenue at the prior-year level despite the
difficult overall market situation. “We were able to maintain the revenue
level of the prior-year quarter despite difficult conditions, and even
improved our adjusted operating result. However, the weak market
environment is reflected in our planning assumptions”, explains Peter
Schneider, Spokesman of the Management Board and EVP of the Electronics
Solutions business unit. The successfully initiated transformation process
will be pursued consistently and AT&S is preparing for further growth. “We
expect average annual revenue growth of approximately 20 percent in the
coming two years due to the opening of our two new plants in Malaysia and
Austria”, Schneider says and emphasizes, “In addition, we are expanding
our leading technology position for printed circuit boards and substrates.
This will bring us new renowned customers and consequently better
protection for future market cycles.”
CFO Petra Preining explains, “The extreme price pressure is omnipresent in
the industry. We are now prepared for it and continuously adapt our
measures.” And Preining adds, “We are strengthening our financial position
through the cash inflows from the sale of our plant in Ansan.
Nevertheless, we are intensively reviewing which investments we will make
in the coming years.”
In comparison with the prior-year period, consolidated revenue was
constant at € 1,197 million in the first three quarters of the financial
year 2024/25 (PY: € 1,205 million). AT&S recorded a positive volume
development during the reporting period, which was, however, offset by
continuing high price pressure for both printed circuit boards and IC
substrates.
EBITDA declined by 13% from € 268 million to € 232 million. The decline in
earnings is primarily attributable to the increased price pressure and
higher start-up costs. In order to counter effects such as price pressure
and inflation resulting from the currently difficult market environment,
AT&S continues to intensively drive its comprehensive cost optimization
and efficiency program. In addition to price pressure, start-up costs in
Kulim, Malaysia, and Leoben, Austria, as well as costs related to the cost
optimization and efficiency program had a negative impact on earnings.
Adjusted for these costs, EBITDA amounted to € 332 million (PY:
€ 321 million), which corresponds to an increase by 4%.
The adjusted EBITDA margin was further increased and amounted to 27.7%
(previous year: 26.6%). The reported EBITDA margin (not adjusted for
start-up and restructuring costs) amounted to 19.4% (previous year:
22.2%).
Depreciation and amortization increased by € 29 million to € 233 million
(19% of revenue) due to additions to assets and technology upgrades. EBIT
fell from € 63 million to € -1 million. The EBIT margin amounted to
-0.1% (PY: 5.3%). Finance costs – net declined from €- 41 million in the
previous year to € -65 million primarily due to higher interest expenses.
This development was mainly driven by a significant increase in financial
liabilities and the related financial expenses. Profit for the period
decreased from € 7 million to € -95 million, leading to a decline
in earnings per share by € 2.63 from € -0.16 to € -2.79 €.
Cash flow from operating activities decreased to €-29 million in the first
three quarters of 2024/25 (previous year: € 497 million). The company is
in the final stage of negotiating the realignment of the international
factoring program, which is expected to be applied from February 2025.
Key figures
in € million Q3 2024/25 Q3 Change in Q1-3 Q1-3 Change in
2023/24 % 2024/25 2023/24 %
Revenue 397 391 1 1.197 1.205 -1
EBITDA 75 51 45 232 268 -13
EBITDA adjusted^1) 109 71 52 332 321 4
EBITDA margin (in 18.8 13.1 - 19.4 22.2 -
%)
EBITDA margin 27.4 18.3 - 27.7 26.6 -
adjusted (in %)^1)
EBIT -8 -18 55 -1 63 -102
EBIT adjusted^1) 32 3 1.089 112 119 -5
EBIT margin (in %) -2.1 -4.7 - -0.1 5.3 -
EBIT margin 8.1 0.7 - 9.4 9.8 -
adjusted (in %)^1)
Profit/loss for the -33 -42 22 -95 7 -1.488
period
ROCE (in %)^1) n.a n.a - -1.6 3.1 -
Net CAPEX 73 182 -60 328 699 -53
Cash flow from
operating 61 156 -61 -29 497 -106
activities
Earnings per share -0.95 -1.19 20 -2.79 -0.16 -1,617
(in €)
Number of 13,227 13,800 -4 13,402 13,922 -4
employees^2)
^
^1) Adjusted for start-up and restructuring costs
^2) Incl. leased personnel, average. As at December 31, 2024: 13,204
The asset and financial position at December 31, 2024 is still
characterized by investing activities and the associated financing
activities. Total assets increased due to an increase in receivables and
property, plant and equipment, among other things. The equity ratio
improved slightly by 0.2 percentage points to 20.9% due to positive
exchange rate effects in other comprehensive income (OCI).
Cash and cash equivalents decreased to € 550 million (March 31, 2024:
€ 676 million). In addition, AT&S has unused credit lines of € 134 million
to secure the financing of the future investment program and short-term
repayments.
Sale of AT&S Korea
AT&S successfully completed the sale of the plant in Ansan, Korea, to the
Italian company SO.MA.CI.S. as of January 31, 2025, thus further
sharpening the Group’s strategic profile. The purchase price (equity
value) amounts to € 405 million and approximately € 17 million of interest
income (equity ticker). The transaction is offset by a disposal of
carrying amount of € 73 million (as of March 31, 2024). The management
expects the transaction to result in cash inflows after tax of
€ 386 million, of which € 79 million was already received in the form of
dividend payments and a prepayment as of December 31, 2024. EBITDA will
increase by approximately € 325 million as a result of the sale. The net
debt/EBITDA ratio will fall from currently 6.1 to less than 3. The gain
from the sale will not be included in the adjusted EBITDA margin.
Georg Riedl Chairman of the Supervisory Board
In the past quarter, AT&S mourned a great loss when Hannes Androsch passed
away. The development of AT&S had been inextricably linked with Mr.
Androsch since 1994, when Androsch, together with Willibald Dörflinger and
Helmut Zoidl, took over the company from ÖIAG.
On December 18, 2024, Georg Riedl became Chairman of the Supervisory Board
of AT&S AG. Riedl is an attorney at the law firm Frotz Riedl
Rechtsanwälte. He was previously First Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory
Board and was initially appointed to the AT&S Supervisory Board on
May 28, 1999.
Expected market environment
The development of the different market segments still shows significant
discrepancies. While volume in the areas of mobile devices, computers and
communication infrastructure proves to be stable and has shown seasonal
growth, the automotive segment is stagnating and the industrial segment
continues to be weak. AT&S expects this weakness, which primarily affects
Europe, to continue into the next financial year. Although overall PCB
prices declined to a lesser degree than in the previous year, price
pressure is persisting to a large extent. In the area of substrates,
pressure on prices remains unchanged.
In the printed circuit board segment it is above all mobile devices and
data centers that show positive forecasts and drove the PCB market in the
last quarter. In addition to increased investments in servers, the related
communication infrastructure is being further expanded. At the same time,
lower demand for e-mobility and a general economic weakness continue to
burden demand for automotive and industrial printed circuit boards.
Automotive and industrial inventory levels are also still high and are
currently being reduced.
In the area of IC substrates, the market benefited from the recovery of
client computing demand and special AI chips, whereas the classic server
segment continues to be subdued. An upturn is largely dependent on a
general economic recovery and is therefore not expected this year.
Outlook 2024/25
Despite a few bright spots in the market, economic pressure is persisting;
therefore, market recovery effects are only slowly becoming apparent. As a
result, the company anticipates price pressure to continue beyond the end
of the fiscal year. To counter this effect, the company is intensifying
and further focusing on the ongoing efficiency programs. In addition to
comprehensive cost-cutting measures, a reduction of up to 1,000 employees
is taking place at the existing locations, which has now been nearly
completed.
The management is planning investments of just under € 500 million
(previously: roughly € 500 million) for the financial year 2024/25
depending on the market environment and progress of projects. The majority
of these investments will be used for the IC substrate production at the
new plants in Kulim and Leoben.
The management expects the volatile order behavior of a key customer to
continue and the weakness of the European automotive and industrial
markets to persist in the last quarter of the financial year 2024/25. As
already communicated in the half-year results, high-volume production at
the two new plants will start one to two quarters later than originally
planned. The company therefore expects the first contributions to revenue
from these plants in the first quarter of the new financial year 2025/26.
Accordingly, the costs incurred until then will be reported as start-up
costs – in the fourth quarter of 2024/25 these should amount to just under
€ 20 million.
AT&S expects to generate annual revenue of between € 1.5 and 1.6 billion
in the financial year 2024/25 and thus confirms the guidance for the
current financial year. Excluding the effects from the start-up of the new
production capacities in Kulim and Leoben and one-off costs from the
implementation of the cost optimization and efficiency program (including
garden leave) of up to € 110 million and excluding the gain from the sale
of the plant in Ansan, the adjusted EBITDA margin is expected to be
between 24 and 26%.
The revenue and EBITDA contributions of the plant in Ansan will be
included in the respective items of the consolidated statement of profit
or loss until the sale process is completed (IFRS 5, Disposal Group). The
gain from the sale will not be included in the adjusted EBITDA margin.
Outlook 2026/27
The production capacity expansion in Kulim and the expansion of the site
in Leoben are still developing positively despite the currently
challenging global economic situation. Nevertheless, AT&S had to adjust
the outlook for the financial year 2026/27 on December 17, 2024. The
adjustments are due to a persistent weakness of the market coupled with
overcapacities for printed circuit boards and IC substrates, and the
resulting price pressure. AT&S now assumes that revenue of approximately
€ 2.1 to € 2.4 billion (previously: € 3 billion) will be generated in the
financial year 2026/27 and expects an EBITDA margin of 24 to 28%
(previously: 27 to 32%). This forecast does not include potential revenue
from the second plant built by AT&S in Kulim. The management monitors the
currently tense geopolitical situation very carefully in order to be able
to respond to developments at any time and to make strategic adaptations.
AT&S Austria Technologie & Systemtechnik Aktiengesellschaft – Advanced
Technologies & Solutions
AT&S is a leading global manufacturer of high-quality IC substrates and
printed circuit boards as well as a developer of pioneering interconnect
technologies for the core areas of mobile devices, automotive & aerospace,
industrial, medical and high-performance computing for VR and AI
applications. AT&S has a global presence with production sites in Austria
(Leoben, Fehring) and plants in India (Nanjangud) and China (Shanghai,
Chongqing). A new high-end production facility for IC substrates is
currently being ramped up in Malaysia (Kulim). A European competence
center with connected series production for IC substrate technologies is
being built in Leoben. Both sites are starting production in the financial
year 2024/25. The company currently employs 13,000 people. For further
information please visit (1)www.ats.net
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04.02.2025 CET/CEST This Corporate News was distributed by EQS Group.
www.eqs.com
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Language: English
Company: AT&S Austria Technologie & Systemtechnik AG
Fabriksgasse 13
8700 Leoben
Austria
Phone: +43 (1) 3842200-0
E-mail: ir@ats.net
Internet: www.ats.net
ISIN: AT0000969985, AT0000A09S02
WKN: 922230
Indices: ATX
Listed: Regulated Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt,
Hamburg, Hanover, Munich, Stuttgart, Tradegate Exchange;
Vienna Stock Exchange (Official Market)
EQS News ID: 2080273
End of News EQS News Service
2080273 04.02.2025 CET/CEST
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