Osram has fully achieved and partially even exceeded its targets for the fiscal year that ended in September 2013. Revenue rose two percent year over year on a comparable basis – meaning excluding portfolio and currency effects – to almost €5.3 billion (US$ 7.93 billion), with a rising dynamic in the final quarter. The revenue share of LED-based products and solutions increased from around 25 percent in fiscal 2012 to 29 percent in the past year. EBITA [1] almost doubled compared with the previous year to €99 million. Excluding special items, EBITA increased 31 percent to €410 million, which equals 7.7 percent of revenue. Osram’s net income turned clearly positive with €34 million in fiscal 2013. Free cash flow amounted to €284 million. Looking ahead, the company expects the positive trend to continue in fiscal 2014, which started in October.
Osram Group in the fourth quarter
Osram reporting segments in the fourth quarter
Specialty Lighting (SP), with its Automotive Lighting and Display/Optics units, continued its positive trend. Thanks to strong demand for halogen lamps and sustained growth in semiconductor-based light sources, the segment achieved a comparable revenue increase of eight percent. The EBITA margin was above 13 percent, or almost 16 percent when adjusted for special items. Automotive Lighting received a design win for laser light front lights and is also engaged in predevelopment projects regarding organic light-emitting diode (OLED) rear lights in vehicles.
The Luminaires & Solutions (LS) reporting segment comprises luminaires for professional customers, products for consumers, as well as the service and solutions business. LS recorded comparable revenue growth of four percent in the final quarter, in particular due to higher sales from LED outdoor luminaires. The segment’s loss was significantly higher than in the previous year because of transformation measures initiated in the luminaires and in the service business. The adjusted EBITA margin was about minus seven percent.
For fiscal 2014, the Managing Board expects revenue growth on a comparable basis to exceed the global real GDP growth, which is currently forecast at approximately three percent (source: IHS Global Insight). This takes into account a negative revenue impact at Luminaires & Solutions due to the initiated restructuring. Regarding EBITA adjusted for special items, Osram expects a margin of more than eight percent. In addition, the Managing Board expects net income to rise sharply this fiscal year. Free cash flow should reach a triple-digit million-euro figure, but stay below the high prior-year figure, mainly due to higher cash outflows for the transformation and capital expenditure. Furthermore, Osram expects to generate a return on capital employed (ROCE) above the cost of capital (WACC) of 8.5 percent.
Business Highlights of fiscal 2013
The annual press conference with OSRAM Licht AG’s Managing Board on the preliminary results for fiscal 2013 will take place today at 8:00 a.m. CET. The conference will also be broadcast via the Internet at www.osram.com/press. After the event, a recording of the conference will also be provided under that link.
