Wolford AG — Earnings Release 2004

Sep 14, 2004

News Details

Ad-hoc | 14 September 2004 08:29

Wolford gains ground in first quarter

Ad-hoc-announcement transmitted by DGAP. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. ——————————————————————————– Wolford gains ground in first quarter EBIT improved by 21.9% – net loss lightened by 23.5% – Significant debt reduction Bregenz, Austria, September 14, 2004 Wolford AG, a listed company, had a positive first quarter in its 2004/05 fiscal year. Sales from May to July 2004 were EUR 24.14 million, or 2.6 percent higher than one year earlier. The positive sales trend in the fourth quarter of last year continued in the reporting period. Compared to the first quarter of the 2003/04 fiscal year, EBIT was lifted from EUR – 3.18 million to EUR – 2.48 million. This represents an improvement of 21.9 percent. The quarterly loss, at EUR 1.74 million, was 23.5 percent closer to the break-even point than the year-earlier deficit of EUR 2.27 million. The financial result improved by 33.0 percent to EUR – 0.27 million. Shareholders’ equity was up slightly to EUR 63.46 million from the year-ago value of EUR 62.22 million, and the equity ratio rose to 45.0 percent. Net debt was reduced by 20.3 percent from EUR 38.91 million to EUR 31.03 million. As of the end of the first quarter, this improved the gearing from 62.6 percent to 48.9 percent. Earnings per share improved from EUR – 0.48 in the first quarter of 2003/04 to EUR – 0.37 in the reporting period. Outlook The welcome trend in sales seen in the first quarter has continued. If it persists, further improvements in profitability can be expected. For the year as a whole the management’s focus remains on the fundamental transformation of the marketing mix with the goal of margin-oriented growth in sales. Contacts: Holger Dahmen, Chief Executive Officer Peter Simma, Chief Financial Officer investor@wolford.com Wolford AG, Wolfordstraße 1, A-6901 Bregenz, Austria Tel. +43 (0) 5574 690 0 http://www.wolford.com end of ad-hoc-announcement (c)DGAP 14.09.2004 ——————————————————————————– WKN: 083400; ISIN: AT0000834007; Index: ATX Listed: Amtlicher Handel in Wien; Freiverkehr in Berlin-Bremen, Frankfurt, Hamburg, München und Stuttgart 140829 Sep 04