AT&S looks back on a successful financial year 2013/14

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) amounted to EUR 127m, an increase of around 24% on the 2012/13 total of around EUR 102m. Consolidated net income for the financial year 2013/14 rose to EUR 38m. The capital increase (gross proceeds of about EUR 100m) and the placement of a bonded loan (gross proceeds of EUR 158m) led to an improvement in the Group’s financing structure. The gearing ratio declined to 28% (2012/13: approx. 71%). “I am delighted that we have been able to achieve consistent growth and continuous improvements in our profitability in a challenging economic environment over the past few years. Capacity utilisation in our core business is currently very high. I am optimistic that the strong positioning of our core business means that we are ideally positioned to benefit from the trends that require high-tech applications such as wearables, the increasing number of automotive electronics and the ‘Internet Of Things’. And I am certain that we are well prepared for the next significant phase of growth with our strategic focus on the new IC substrates business at our plant in Chongqing,“ explained CEO Andreas Gerstenmayer. Mobile Devices’ sales for the financial year 2013/14 reached EUR 321m, an improvement of around 8% on the previous year’s total (2012/13: EUR 297m). AT&S strengthened its position as a high-tech supplier to top smartphone and tablet manufacturers. This resulted in various changes to the customer portfolio, including additional business from existing customers and the acquisition of new customers in areas such as the wearables segment. The Shanghai plant reported high capacity utilisation throughout the financial year. The setup of the Chongqing plant with a strategic focus on the new integrated circuit (IC) substrates business is progressing according to plan. During the financial year 2013/14 the focus was on building infrastructure. The next milestone is the installation and qualification of the production machinery. Industrial and Automotive’s sales for the financial year 2013/14 reached EUR 265m, an increase of around 9% on the previous year’s total (2012/13: approx. EUR 243m). Automotive reported a record year driven by sales of high-value printed circuit boards for energy efficiency, safety, infotainment and entertainment applications. Moderate but continuously growing demand for industrial applications made a significant contribution to the segment’s positive performance. The company is also expecting ‘Industry 4.0’ to have a significant impact on growth over the medium term. AT&S’s medical technology business also performed very positively, an area where the Group is focusing on therapy, diagnostics and patient monitoring.