Group revenue in the first nine months of 2012 rose 12% to €812.6 million, compared to €727.6 million in 2011. Light equipment and compact equipment were the strongest sections, reporting increases of 10% and 14% respectively. The Americas was the strongest regional revenue driver, with a rise of 22%. In Europe, revenue grew by 8%.
However, WN Group revenue for Q3 2012 (1 July – 30 September) rose by just 2% to reach €254.5 million, compared to €248.9 million in Q3 2011.
“During the third quarter in particular, we felt the impact of falling demand in the European construction industry as a result of the ongoing finance and debt crisis,” explained Cem Peksaglam, chief executive of WN. “In contrast, our revenue in the Americas region continued to develop well, rising 10% on the [Q3] prior-year period. The Asia-Pacific region reported 16% [Q3] growth on the prior-year period.”
Unfavourable market conditions in Europe were said by WN to cause its EBITDA margin for the first nine months of 2012 to fall to 13.6% (16.7% in 2011), and the EBIT margin to drop to 8.5% (11.9% in 2011). WN’s relocation to a new production facility in Hörsching, near Linz, Austria, is said to have led to unexpected delays in product deliveries and additional one-off start-up costs, all of which had a further impact on revenue and earnings. Processes at the plant are now said to have been optimised, and the planned level of capacity utilisation has been reached.
As a result of the tough market conditions and factors associated with the production facility relocation, WN earnings for Q3 2012 were below expectations. The EBITDA margin amounted to 13.4% – a rise on the same figure for Q2 2012 (13.1%), but a significant drop on the prior-year period (Q3 2011: 19.9%; adjusted to discount one-off effects: 18.1%).
WN said the fourth quarter had got off to a promising start, although Group performance varied significantly from region to region. “We will continue to monitor market developments closely and retain our high level of flexibility, thus enabling us to react rapidly to any market changes,” said Peksaglam. “Our current order intake levels leave us optimistic for the fourth quarter of 2012.”
WN has reconfirmed its forecast for the current year and expects revenue to amount to around €1.1 billion (2011: €991.6 million). It also expects the EBITDA margin to level out between 13 and 15% (2011: 16.4%). The company also plans to grow in 2013, depending on how the general economic climate develops, especially in Europe.
