04.30.19
Perstorp published its Annual Report for the year ended December 2018.
Key financial highlights include:
- Net sales of SEK 14,882 m, an increase of nine percent compared to the same period last year;
- EBITDA excluding non-recurring items, amounted to a record high of SEK 2,324 m (2,133), corresponding to an EBITDA margin of 15.6 percent;
- The group’s available funds, unrestricted cash and unutilized credit facilities, were SEK 1,120 (1,220) m at the end of the December 2018. Net debt, excluding shareholder loan and pension liability, increased by SEK 1,046 m during 2018 to a total of SEK 13 102 m. Leverage was 5.6x at the end of 2018 compared to 5.7x at the end of 2017.
Developments and strategic direction:
In 2018 and at the beginning of 2019, the company undertook several significant transformational initiatives to become fit and more agile for the future:
- The Care 365 program is Perstorp’s way of putting health and safety first. Both the safety metrics as well as the results in the annual employee survey show that Care 365 delivered positive results in 2018. We have seen a continued decrease in OSHA-recordable accidents and improved employee satisfaction in our employee survey;
- Perstorp was transferred to a new investment fund by its current owners, PAI Partners, backed by a new investor Landmark Partners and other co-investors. As a part of the deal, the new investors have agreed to commit EUR 130 million to Perstorp for M&A and CAPEX activities to further advance the company’s growth strategy;
- The company re-positioned its portfolio of products after divesting Perstorp BioProducts and the Capa business to focus on driving future growth from the Company’s three core business areas; Specialty Polyols & Solutions, Advanced Chemicals and Animal Nutrition;
- In 2019, Perstorp introduced a new operational model and a new organization structure with the main objective to better address customer demands for supply reliability and focused innovation. This has created a more lean and efficient company, with the aim of being even better at serving customers’ needs;
- Perstorp entered into a new financing agreement in 2019 which will strengthen the Company’s balance sheet and further enhance its ability to generate free cash flow, fully in line with its strategic objectives. In addition, this has led to an improved credit rating from both Moody’s (B2) and Standard & Poor’s (B).
“Continuous profitable growth is our headline moving forward, we have set ambitious and challenging goals for ourselves including outgrowing the market and reaching a new sustainable earnings level after the divestments of Perstorp Bioproducts and Capa," said Jan Secher, president and CEO of Perstorp. "Yet beyond hard numbers, we have set clear targets for further developing our Leadership and how to lead change. It boils down to this: we are building one strong culture comprising both the hard financial performance and the softer value that fuels growth. This symbiosis between performance and care is the magic formula for Perstorp.
"I am very proud to lead this company and to be the one leading the way to the next level of performance," Secher continued. "It is in our DNA to always look for improvements, to take things to the next level, to the possible, saying, 'Wow, we did it! What more can we do?' Regardless of where we work in the company, we take what we have learned and use it to drive that next competitive edge – for ourselves and our customers.”
