Solar - Interim / Quarterly Report 2017

No. 12 2017 Quarterly Report Q1 2017

No. 12 2017 Quarterly Report Q1 2017

LEI: 21380031XTLI9X5MTY92

Q1 revenue and EBITA are in line with expectations. Significant financial income relates to fair value adjustment of shareholding in BIMobject AB. We reconfirm our guidance for the full year.

**CEO Anders Wilhjelm says: **

"We are pleased to see organic growth in most of our markets and our ability to further reduce net working capital without compromising delivery performance. Our initiatives relating to innovation and business development are proceeding as planned. We balance our business focus between our main business and the associated businesses, which is highly important in transformational times. We have established good collaboration between our main business and the associated businesses, which we expect will create mutually beneficial business opportunities."


Financial highlights (DKK million)	Q1 2017	Q1 2016	2016
Revenue	2,996	2,656	11,072
EBITA	56	52	278
Net financials*	95	-11	-34
Earnings before tax	134	28	188
Cash flow from operating activities	-96	-251	219
Financial ratios (%)
Organic growth	10.7	-0.3	2.8
Organic growth adj. for number of working days	4.6	1.2	1.8
EBITA margin	1.9	2.0	2.5
Net working capital, period-end/revenue (LTM)	9.9	11.6	9.0
Net working capital, average/revenue (LTM)**	10.2	11.6	10.7
Gearing (NIBD/EBITDA) no. of times	1.4	0.4	0.1
Return on invested capital (ROIC)	7.4	8.2	7.5

*Fair value adjustment of associated businesses is recognised in the income statement as financial income. The adjustment is related to BIMobject AB.

**Calculated as an average of the past four quarters' inventories, trade receivables and trade payables.

Q1 2017 revenue

Revenue grew by 12.8% in Q1. Organic growth was 10.7%, but 4.6% against 1.2% in Q1 2016, when adjusted for the number of working days.

Q1 2017 EBITA

EBITA was on par with expectations.
Our initiatives relating to innovation and business development, as well as the necessary structural changes are proceeding as planned. However, the phasing of the non-recurring costs for 2017 is uneven, with almost half of the expected non-recurring costs for 2017 in Q1. Compared to Q1 2016, the increase in external operating costs and staff costs was mostly related to MAG45 and STI being acquired during 2016.

2017 outlook

We expect a revenue of approximately DKK 11.4bn, equal to an organic growth of approximately 3%.
The strong focus on innovation and business development continues in 2017, and we initiate the necessary structural changes made possible by our digital investments and our ongoing investment in new developments.
For 2017, we reconfirm our expectations for an EBITA of approximately DKK 300m.


EBITA overview DKK million	Guidance 2017	Actual 2016
Operational EBITA	345	302
Innovation and business development	-25	-20
Non-recurring costs	-20	-15
Positive one-offs	0	11
EBITA	300	278

Audio webcast and teleconference today The presentation of Quarterly Report Q1 2017 will be made in English on 3 May 2017 at 11:00 CET. The presentation will be transmitted as an audio webcast and accessible via www.solar.eu. Participation will be possible via a teleconference.

Teleconference call-in numbers:

DK: tel. +45 354 455 83

UK: tel. +44 203 194 0544

US: tel. +1 855 269 2604

Yours faithfully

Solar A/S

Anders Wilhjelm

Contacts: CEO Anders Wilhjelm - tel. +45 79 30 02 01

CFO Michael H. Jeppesen - tel. +45 79 30 02 62

Director, Stakeholder Relations Charlotte Risskov Kræfting - tel. +45 40 34 29 08

Enclosure: Quarterly Report Q1 2017, pages 1-28.

Facts about Solar Solar Group is a leading sourcing and services company. Our core business centres on product sourcing, value-adding services and optimisation of our customers' businesses.

Being a sourcing and services company, we focus on each individual customer. We always strive to understand our customers' unique and genuine needs in order to provide relevant, personal and value-adding services, turning our customers into winners.

Solar Group is headquartered in Denmark, generated revenue of approximately DKK 11.1bn in 2016 and has more than 3,000 employees. Solar is listed on Nasdaq Copenhagen and operates under the short designation SOLAR B. For more information, please visit www.solar.eu.

Disclaimer This announcement was published in English and Danish today via Nasdaq Copenhagen. In the event of any inconsistency between the two versions, the English version shall prevail.

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