Dr. Hönle AG: Hönle generated an adjusted operating result of €5.0 million in nine months

Gilching (pta011/07.08.2023/08:30 UTC+2)

• Still high order backlog
• Revenue decreases by 8.5% to €79.7 million due to a drop in revenue in the air sterilization sector
• Discontinuation of the product line of mobile air disinfection systems and the resignation of a member of the Management Board lead to negative one-off effects totalling €11.9 million in Q3
• Operating result (EBIT) falls to €-6.8 million (PY: €9.6 million)
• Adjusted operating result is €5.0 million (PY: €9.0 million)
• Forecast for the 2022/23 financial year confirmed

The end of the pandemic situation led to a significant decline in sales in the air disinfection business. Therefore sales revenues in the first nine months of financial year 2022/2023 were T€ 79,740, which is 8.5% down from the previous year's period.

The earnings development was marked by several one-off effects in the third quarter. Following the change of the Management Board Chairman, Dr. Hönle AG's Management Board worked intensively on all of the Hönle Group's segments and business fields. In this context it was decided, among other things, to discontinue the product line of the mobile SteriWhite Air sterilization systems due to a lack of prospects for success after the corona pandemic had subsided. As a consequence, the inventory of air disinfection devices and related components was completely written off.

The negative one-off effects, to a large extent associated with the discontinuation of the mobile air sterilization systems product line amounted to € 11.9 million including the personnel expenses of T€ 770 resulting from the resignation of the former Management Board Chairman.

Consequently, at T€ -6,827, the operating result (EBIT) was clearly below the result generated in the amount of T€ 9,571 in the previous year. Adjusted for one-off effects, the operating result came to T€ 5,030 (PY: T€ 9,046).

Earnings before taxes (EBT) stood at T€ -7,834 (PY: T€ 8,500). After income taxes, the consolidated result was T€ -6,548 (PY: T€ 4,736), which corresponds to earnings per share of -1.09 € (PY: 0.77 €).

Outlook

The Management Board confirms the guidance for the 2022/2023 financial year. It expects sales revenues of € 100 million to € 105 million for the Hönle Group in financial year 2022/2023. Furthermore, it expects an operating result (EBIT) excluding one-off effects in the amount of € 5.5 million to € 6.5 million. Including negative one-off effects largely as a result of the discontinuation of the mobile air disinfection systems product line, the Management Board expects an operating result (EBIT) of between € -7 million to € -8 million.

All business segments of the Hönle Group are expected to generate positive adjusted operating results and a positive operating cash flow as a whole.

Adhesives Segment

The Management Board expects sales in the Adhesives segment in financial year 2022/2023 to be roughly on par with the previous year's level. Earnings will be negatively impacted by higher personnel expenses in connection with the workforce expansion. Within the scope of the planned sales growth, the number of employees in the development and sales departments was stocked up further. In addition, a changed product mix and exchange rate differences are reducing operating profit. As a consequence, the segment result for the current financial year is expected to be below the previous year's level.

Hönle has high-volume adhesives projects in the photovoltaics and electro mobility sectors that are of great importance for the medium- and long-term development of the Adhesives segment. Further projects exist in the areas of automotive, consumer electronics, and 5G mobile networks.

In order to reach the targeted further development of the US-American and Chinese markets, the local sales and application technology teams will be strengthened with a view to providing more intensive local customer support and ensure a sustainable increase in sales volume in these regions.

Equipment & Systems Segment

Sales in the Equipment & Systems segment in financial year 2022/2023 will be lower than in the previous year, mainly due to the end of the corona pandemic and the associated decline in the sale of mobile air disinfection systems. The segment result will be negative due to the complete write-down of inventories of air disinfection equipment and related components. The segment result adjusted for special effects is expected to be in the low single-digit million range.

Eltosch Grafix GmbH was merged into Dr. Hönle AG. Several effects are achieved as a result: The merger of the two companies enables the establishment of a high-performance service and sales network. In addition, the streamlining of the Group structure is to be driven forward.

Promising customer projects are currently underway in the automotive and medical technology sectors, among others, which are expected to contribute to the planned increase in sales revenues in the next financial year. With a view to strengthening competitiveness, extensive new developments are being made with respect to adhesives curing equipment. The focus here is on performance, operation and design. Expanding the project and process management will accelerate internal processes while ensuring consistently high quality.

Glass & Lamps Segment

The end of the corona pandemic will make itself felt in the air disinfection sector. Sales at uv-technik Speziallampen GmbH, in particular, will therefore be below the previous year's level.

Overall, the Management Board expects the Glass & Lamps segment's operating result in financial 2022/2023 to be higher than the segment's result for the first nine months (T€ 1,610).

The sale of the energy- and investment-intensive subsidiary Raesch Quarz (Germany) GmbH will result in less dependency on fluctuating energy prices in the future. At the same time, reduced cash outflows for investments can be expected.

Several customer projects are currently underway that will contribute to sales growth in the coming years. These include the sterilization of water by means of ultraviolet radiation. The environmentally friendly process is increasingly used in the treatment of drinking, process, ultrapure and ballast water. The Hönle Group supplies leading manufacturers of water treatment systems with lamps and components in these fields of application. Further promising projects in the Glass & Lamps segment are underway in the pharmaceutical and electro mobility sector.

The expansion of development and sales capacities makes it possible to serve both the ongoing customer projects and new fields of application at the same time.

The full third quarterly statement is available at:

https://www.hoenle.com/investor-relation/financial-information#reports

About Hönle

Dr. Hönle AG is a leading provider of industrial UV technology based in Gilching. With 600 employees, the Hönle Group develops innovative solutions for different areas of application. A focus of its business activities is the development and sale of industrial adhesives and casting compounds. Equipment for drying ink and coatings, curing adhesives and plastics, as well as for disinfecting air, water and surfaces and sunlight simulation are also manufactured. In addition, the group of companies produces UV lamps and quartz glass products, among other things for disinfection and drying processes. The Hönle Group supplies technology and global market leaders and is represented by its own companies and partner companies in more than 20 countries.

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Emitter:	Dr. Hönle AG Nicolaus-Otto-Str. 2 82205 Gilching Germany
Contact Person:	Peter Weinert
Phone:	+49 8105 2083 173
E-Mail:	peter.weinert@hoenle.de
Website:	www.hoenle.de
ISIN(s):	DE0005157101 (Share)
Stock Exchange(s):	Regulated Market in Frankfurt; Free Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Hannover, Munich, Stuttgart, Tradegate