INTERIM REPORT, January-June 2020

Strong quarter with improved KPI’s

Second quarter of 2020

  • Consolidated net sales increased by 7 percent to SEK 949 m (889), of which organic growth amounted to 7 percent
  • Net sales in Product & Solutions amounted to SEK 753 m (688) and in Installation Services to SEK 228 m (234)
  • Gross profit increased to SEK 282 m (238), Gross margin increased to 29.8% (26.7%)
  • EBITDA increased to SEK 166 m (124), EBITDA margin increased to 17.4% (13.9%)
  • Operating profit (EBIT) increased to SEK 137 m (95), EBIT margin increased to 14.4% (10.7%)
  • ROCE increased to 15.1 percent (12.9)
  • Cash flow from operating activities amounted to SEK 114 m (78)
  • Earnings per share before and after dilution were SEK 4.55 (2.79) and SEK 4.51 (2.77), respectively

January-June 2020

  • Consolidated net sales increased by 11 percent to SEK 1,618 m (1,458), of which organic growth amounted to 10 percent
  • Net sales in Product & Solutions amounted to SEK 1,291 m (1,134) and in Installation Services to SEK 379 m (373)
  • Gross profit increased to SEK 441 m (370), Gross margin increased to 27.2% (25.4%)
  • EBITDA increased to SEK 198 m (142), EBITDA margin increased to 12.2% (9.7%)
  • Operating profit (EBIT) increased to SEK 139 m (89), EBIT margin increased to 8.6% (6.1%)
  • Cash flow from operating activities amounted to SEK 28 m (17)
  • Earnings per share before and after dilution were SEK 4.18 (2.35) and SEK 4.14 (2.33), respectively

 
Message from the CEO
Strong quarter with improved KPI’s
Nordic Waterproofing had another strong quarter with good growth in both sales, financial results and basically all KPI’s. Consolidated net sales for the quarter rose by 7 percent compared with last year, from SEK 889 m to SEK 949 m. Organic growth was 7 percent, acquisitions contributed by 1 percent and currency exchange rate effect was -1 percent.
EBIT in the quarter increased to SEK 137 m compared to SEK 95 m previous year, an increase of 43 percent, mainly driven by the increased volume, good cost control and some cost avoidance due to reduced travelling.
The Covid-19 pandemic has challanged all our operations in different ways. Fortunately and thanks to pro-active and resolute management and a highly responsible approach and behaviour among our colleagues in this situation, we have seen very few cases of Covid-19 among our personnel and business partners. In the current situation, it is difficult to predict the long-term impact from the pandemic on our markets and on our Group. We continue to monitor the development carefully and are prepared to act swiftly if needed.
The consolidated net sales growth of 7 percent in the quarter was driven by our Products & Solutions segment that grew 10 percent organically while the Installation Services segment decreased 3 percent. The strong sales could be partly due to customers building inventory because of supply capability concerns.
Within the Products & Solutions segment all four Nordic markets showed good growth in the legacy bitumen-based business. In particular growth was strong in Denmark and Norway. We believe that we have seen a continued market share gain in the Nordics.
Our SealEco rubber membrane business, which had seen some Covid-19 impact in the first quarter, had a strong second quarter with double-digit growth. All markets grew except the UK which suffered from the impact of Covid-19. Distri Pond, which was acquired in February 2019, recovered well from a weaker first quarter and grew 35% in sales in the second quarter.
Our prefabricated elements business had a somewhat weaker quarter in sales than previous year as well as our Veg Tech green infrastructure business. In prefabricated elements we have a strong orderbook and basically all available capacity for 2020 is now booked.
Within the Installation Services segment, where most sales are generated in Finland, the market development continues to vary by region. We see strong market development in the Helsinki area while the market is weaker in the more rural areas of Finland. In the flooring segment, both cruise ships and construction, sales were slightly below second quarter of the previous year.
Our Danish franchise companies continue to experience a strong market and performed very well in the second quarter, with strong order books and an EBIT contribution above the corresponding period last year.
As communicated earlier, a comprehensive profit improvement program is being implemented in the Taasinge Group, our prefabricated elements business. EBIT saw a slight improvement over the first quarter, but remains far from satisfactory. In both Taasinge Elementer in Denmark and RVT in Norway we have strong order books at the end of the quarter.
Given the uncertain situation regarding the impact from the Covid-19 outbreak, we during the quarter increased our focus on monitoring order intake, cost and customer credit control. We also took measures to safeguard access to raw material to guarantee supply capabilities to our customers. I am pleased to see that this pro-activeness seems to have paid off with good business development, basically no disruption in the supply chain, good cost control and no increase in bad debts. Going forward we continue to monitor the potential impact from Covid-19 carefully. We will continue to prioritize to safeguard the health of our employees, to take responsibility for communities and for our customers.
We continue to focus on organic growth, profitability and selective acquisitions. Our balance sheet is strong and we have the capacity to make acquisitions in line with our strategic direction of promoting sustainability and enhance our product and service offering.
Vejen, 24 July 2020
Martin Ellis,
President and CEO
 
Conference call
A conference call for investors, analysts and media will be held today, 24 July 2020, at 10:00 a.m. CET and can be joined online at www.nordicwaterproofing.com. Presentation materials for the call will be available on the website one hour before the call.
To participate, please dial:
From the United Kingdom:
+44 33 3300 9266
From Denmark:
+45 78 15 01 07
From Sweden:
+46 8 505 583 51
 
 
Further information can be obtained from
Martin Ellis, President and CEO
phone: +45 31 21 36 69
Per-Olof Schrewelius, CFO & Investor Relations
phone: +46 707 82 79 58
 
This information is information that Nordic Waterproofing Holding A/S is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact persons set out above, at 24 July 2020, 08:00 a.m. CET.