STRABAG SE Trading Statement 9M 2020: Figures confirm the outlook
12 November 2020
- Output volume down 9 % to € 11.1 billion
- Order backlog up 7 % to € 19.0 billion
- 2020 outlook confirmed: output volume at € 15.0 billion, EBIT margin expected to reach at least 3.5 %
| STRABAG SE | 9M/2020 |
9M/2019 |
in % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Output volume |
11,099.85 |
12,150.23 |
-9% |
| Order backlog | 18,962.07 |
17,733.68 |
7% |
| Employees | 74,169 |
76,875 |
-4% |
| North + West | 9M/2020 |
9M/2019 |
in % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Output volume |
5,707.72 |
5,848.53 |
-2% |
| Order backlog | 9,583.15 |
8,843.12 |
8% |
| Employees | 25,697 |
25,161 |
2% |
| South + East | 9M/2020 |
9M/2020 |
in % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Output volume |
3,294.79 |
3,528.95 |
-7% |
| Order backlog | 4,486.08 |
4,642.64 |
-3% |
| Employees | 20,218 |
19,547 |
3% |
| International + Special Divisions | 9M/2020 |
9M/2019 |
in % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Output volume |
1,991.56 |
2,677.03 |
-26% |
| Order backlog | 4,887.63 |
4,243.94 |
15% |
| Employees | 21,589 |
25,728 |
-16% |
| Other | 9M/2020 |
9M/2019 |
in % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Output volume |
105.78 |
95.72 |
11% |
| Order backlog | 5.21 |
3.98 |
31% |
| Employees | 6,665 |
6,439 |
4% |
STRABAG SE, the publicly listed European-based technology group for construction services, today announced its figures for the first nine months of 2020. “We have seen a continuation of the trend observed in the previous quarters: the decline in output is in line with expectations for the year as a whole, and the order backlog remains very high. We are therefore staying with the outlook for 2020,” says Thomas Birtel, CEO of STRABAG SE.
Output volume
In the first three quarters of 2020, STRABAG SE generated an output volume of € 11,099.85 million, 9 % less than in the same period of the previous year. This is largely due to the same three factors as reported in the semi-annual report: the loss of a German key account in the property and facility services business resulting from an expired contract in mid-2019, the temporary halt to construction activity due to the coronavirus crisis in Austria, and the performance and completion of tunnelling projects in Chile.
Order backlog
The order backlog as per 30 September 2020 amounted to € 19.0 billion, up 7 % on the same date in the previous year. The execution of large orders in the Americas, Hungary and Poland, among other places, was contrasted by new large orders and contract extensions in tunnelling in the United Kingdom and a significant increase in the order backlog in Germany. The company added several substantial projects to its order books in Germany in the third quarter of 2020, including a major contract for Deutsche Bahn and the award of the A49 motorway project in Hesse under a public-private partnership (PPP) scheme. Further projects acquired in the third quarter include the expansion of the water supply system in Ghana as well as railway modernisation works along a 9.6 km section in the Czech Republic and a 11.2 km section in Bulgaria.
Employees
The reduced output is also reflected in the lower number of employees, which fell by 4 % to 74,169 compared to the first nine month of the previous year. Due to the aforementioned loss of a large, long-running contract in the Property & Facility Services segment in the previous year, the greatest decline was recorded in Germany, followed by project-related staff reductions in the Middle East. Developments in the other markets were mixed.
Outlook
The Management Board confirms its outlook for the 2020 financial year as updated in August and anticipates a decrease in the output volume to approx. € 15.0 billion (-10 %). At the same time, it should still be possible to attain an EBIT margin of at least 3.5 % as had been previously expected. Net investment (cash flow from investing activities) is not expected to exceed € 450 million.
