Stable revenue and earnings growth in the first quarter
Significant improvement in earnings per share
Masterflex Group started the financial year 2018 with stable revenues of EUR 20.0 million. This meant that the revenue level of the very strong first quarter of 2017 with its leap in revenue at that time could be repeated, even though holiday-related effects, an extraordinarily high sick-leave rate at almost all European companies and currency effects hampered further revenue growth. Dr. Andreas Bastin, the CEO of Masterflex Group, stated as follows: "We are satisfied with the start of the financial year. The operating development is intact in all areas. The goal for the second quarter is now above all to rapidly process the orders received at the end of 2017 and in the first quarter, which have added up to an order backlog that is high by our standards, and thus to show the forecast growth rates."
On the earnings side, the good figures of the prior-year quarter were slightly exceeded and the margin confirmed. EBITDA improved from EUR 2.7 million to EUR 2.8 million. With an operating EBIT of EUR 2.0 million, which was also up slightly from the year before, the EBIT margin was at the previous year's level of 9.8%. Thanks in part to a further improvement in the financial result, consolidated net income rose from EUR 1.0 million to EUR 1.2 million. Earnings per share improved from EUR 0.10 to EUR 0.13 in the first three months of the year.
After the first quarter, Masterflex Group confirms its forecasts for the financial year 2018 as a whole. The growth course is to be continued and revenues are to grow within a range of 4% to 8%. The increase in earnings is expected to be in line with revenue growth with a simultaneous confirmation of the margin. In the medium term, Masterflex Group aims to achieve strong double-digit EBIT margins again.