Sapa: Interim report January-June 2004

Interim report January-June 2004
[2004-07-15 8:30]

Sharp increase in earnings with improved profitability

Earnings per share increased 46 per cent to SEK 7.75 (5.31), of which SEK 0.66 capital gain from the sale of the shareholding in Boal
Profit after tax increased 45 per cent to MSEK 282, including capital gain of MSEK 24 from the sale of the Boal shares
Net sales increased 29 per cent to MSEK 7,204 (5,592)
Sharp improvement in operating profit to MSEK 443 (320), up 38 per cent
Operating margin strengthened to 6.2 per cent (5.7)

Sapa in brief¹	Apr-June 2004	Apr-June 2003	Jan-June 2004	Jan-June 2003
Net sales, MSEK	3,729	2,833	7,204	5,592
Operating profit, MSEK	243	169	443	320
Operating margin, %	6,5	6,0	6,2	5,7
Profit before tax, MSEK	216	155	389	291
Profit after tax, MSEK	142	103	258	194
Earnings per share, SEK	3.91	2.81	7.09	5.31
Cash flow after investments, MSEK²	80	220	150	94
Deliveries, tonnes	105,260	79,050	204,800	155,840
Debt/equity ratio			0.57	0.61

¹Excluding capital gain of MSEK 24
² Excluding company acquisitions/divestments

"Operating profit for the first six months was the best up to now for Sapa in its current business structure. The RCA units, which are now fully integrated in Profiles and Building System, have developed significantly better than expected. We have had a good market development, particularly in the US, but also in Western Europe. Together with favourable organic growth of 10 per cent, volumes during the first six months increased by 31 per cent, and market shares were gained in the US and France," comments Sapa´s president and CEO Kåre Wetterberg.

"As we previously forecast, the economic improvement in the industrial sector in Europe was noticeable during the first six months, particularly during the second quarter. In the US, growth continued. Demand in Asia was strong, although some weakening has been noted in China recently. We therefore retain our previous assessment that sales and profits will continue to improve during 2004."

For further information please contact Kåre Wetterberg, CEO, tel. +46 8-459 59 43, Stefan Thorheim, CFO, tel. +46 8-459 59 17 or Gabriella Ekelund, Communications Manager, tel. +46-8-459 59 62.

This report is also available on Sapa´s website: www.sapagroup.com. A slide presentation of this release can be downloaded as a PDF file. Select Financial Information/Quarterly Presentations.

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