GEA has for the first time achieved the ranking of “Gold Standard” in the EcoVadis sustainability assessment.
The Supervisory Board of GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft has reached further decisions for an orderly membership transition in the Supervisory Board, following December’s nomination of Klaus Helmrich as the successor to the current Chairman, Dr. Helmut Perlet. Jean E. Spence and Ahmad M.A. Bastaki have both informed the Board that they will not stand at the next election of shareholder representatives.
In 2020, GEA further strengthened its operational results and its financial and net asset position in a highly challenging economic environment. Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, both order intake (EUR 4,703 million) and revenue (EUR 4,635 million) declined only slightly. EBITDA before restructur-ing measures (EUR 532 million) and ROCE (17.1 percent) increased substantially. Net liquidity also rose significantly, increasing by EUR 374 million to EUR 402 million. On this basis, GEA will propose a stable dividend of EUR 0.85 per share to its shareholders. The company expects increased revenue and earnings in 2021.
GEA has successfully concluded the sale of compressor manufacturer Bock, formerly assigned to its Refrigeration Technologies division, to NORD Holding, as was contractually agreed in September 2020. Closing took place on today’s date. The parties have agreed not to disclose the financial details of the transaction.
At its meeting yesterday, the Supervisory Board of GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft extended the contract of CEO Stefan Klebert (55) by five years until December 31, 2026.
On December 31, 2020, GEA has closed the sale of Japy Tech SAS (formerly GEA Farm Technologies Japy SAS) and Royal De Boer Stalinrichtingen B.V. to Mutares SE & Co. KGaA that was contractually agreed in November 2020.
The Supervisory Board of GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft set the course for an orderly membership transition in the Supervisory Board. Klaus Helmrich (62), currently a member of the Managing Board of Siemens AG and CEO Digital Industries until September 30, 2020, is to succeed Dr. Helmut Perlet as Chairman of the Supervisory Board. The corresponding resolution recommending the election of the candidate at the Annual General Meeting on April 30, 2021 was passed by the Supervisory Board at its meeting today.
CDP assessed GEA’s efforts in the “water” category for the first time, awarding it an excellent “A” score; GEA also maintained last year’s “A-” rating in the climate benchmark.
In a difficult economic environment in which the COVID-19 pandemic continued to weigh on GEA’s order intake and revenue, the positive effects of the measures introduced last year to improve efficiency are becoming increasingly noticeable. In the third quarter of 2020, for example, the Group further increased EBITDA before restructuring measures, improved free cash flow, continued to reduce net working capital and converted the net debt at the prior-year reporting date into net liquidity.
In line with its stated strategic portfolio optimization, GEA is divesting two companies that until now have been part of the Group’s Farm Technologies division.
In light of the ongoing difficult situation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Executive Board and the Supervisory Board of GEA Group AG have resolved that the Annual General Meeting for the 2019 fiscal year will be held as a virtual event. The AGM, which has been postponed from April 30 to November 26, 2020, will consequently take place without the physical presence of shareholders or their proxies.
As part of its continued focus on strategic core markets – the food, beverages and pharmaceutical industries – Düsseldorf-based technology group GEA is selling the compressor manufacturer Bock, which is in GEA’s Refrigeration Technologies division, to NORD Holding. The purchase agreement was signed yesterday. The parties have agreed not to disclose the financial details of the transaction. The transaction remains subject to regulatory clearance. Closing of the transaction is expected in early 2021.
GEA Group AG decided on strategic guidelines and significant investments to further optimize its production network. In this context, production at the Bodenheim site near Mainz will be discontinued by the end of 2024. The plant in Koszalin, Poland, will be expanded into a Center of Competence for pump production and comprehensive machining. GEA will invest around EUR 30 million in this expansion. Investments and a further consolidation of production and process activities are planned at other locations, too. The aim is to further strengthen GEA’s global production network in order to increase productivity and reduce its cost base.
EBITDA before restructuring measures (EUR 140 million) up by a substantial 26.2 percent in second quarter — Order intake (EUR 1,034 million) down 9.8 percent on previous year — Revenue (EUR 1,165 million) down 6.6 percent on previous year; service business more robust, share now up to 33 percent — ROCE up from 10.5 percent in the previous year to 14.8 percent — Free cash flow improves, reaching EUR 182 million in second quarter (previous year: EUR 9 million) — Net liquidity EUR 92 million as of reporting date (previous year: EUR -330 million) — Total workforce reduced by 1,141 employees — Outlook for financial year raised in part
Ad hoc disclosure in accordance with article 17 of MAR - GEA significantly improves preliminary earnings for the second quarter and raises part of its full-year 2020 guidance
In the first quarter of 2020, the technology company GEA was commissioned by Hochwald Foods GmbH to provide the entire technological setup for dairy processing at a new plant in the German town of Mechernich, near Cologne.
With the coronavirus crisis affecting operating business only to a very minor extent in the first quarter of 2020, technology group GEA began the current financial year with significant increases in both order intake and EBITDA before restructuring measures. These positive developments were achieved largely due to the new group organization introduced in January as well as to operational improvements resulting from measures introduced last year to increase efficiency in the group.
Düsseldorf, May 14, 2020 – GEA and SAP today announced a strategic partnership which will drive forward GEA’s digital transformation and fast-track the development of SAP’s product portfolio for leading engineering, technology and industrial companies. The two companies have a longstanding history of fruitful collaboration. The strategic partnership will elevate this relationship to a new level and realize mutual benefits for both companies.
Owing to the COVID-19 virus, the technology company GEA is postponing its Annual General Meeting originally planned for April 30, 2020, in Düsseldorf and will reschedule it for the end of the year. The health of the company’s shareholders, employees and the service providers involved takes the highest priority. By postponing the event, GEA is making an active contribution to slowing the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
In November, GEA sold de Klokslag to Evert IJntema and Jan Dijkema. De Klokslag, which is one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of large-scale plants for hard and semi hard cheese, has roughly 80 employees and, according to the latest figures, generates an annual revenue of around EUR 15 million.
Technology group GEA posted an increase in both order intake and revenue in the third quarter of 2019. Order intake rose to EUR 1.25 billion in the last quarter, an increase of around 5 percent compared to the same quarter in 2018. Both basic business and six large projects (three of which were awarded in dairy processing) contributed to this positive development.
The Supervisory Board of GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft has appointed Johannes Giloth (49) to the company’s Executive Board with effect from January 20, 2020, where he will assume responsibility for the newly created Procurement, Production and Logistics organization.
Düsseldorf-based technology group GEA is exploring a possible sale of GEA Bock as part of the Group’s continued focus on its strategic core markets – the food, chemical and pharmaceutical industries. As announced at the Capital Markets Day in September, GEA plans to divest selected activities of the future Farm Technologies and Refrigeration Technologies divisions in this connection.
Technology group GEA will today present new medium-term targets for the entire Group and its five future divisions at the Capital Markets Day. The Group plans that consolidated revenues will grow by an average of 2.0–3.0 percent per year until 2022.
Technology group GEA acquired several major orders from various industries at the start of the third quarter, making up substantial ground after sluggish order intake from project business in the previous quarter.
GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft is standing by its business outlook for 2019, despite various special effects having a negative impact on earnings in the second quarter of the year.
Technology group GEA has outlined its new organizational structure, which will be implemented gradually from October 1, 2019 onwards and become effective January 1, 2020. Going forward, GEA will be organized in five divisions with each up to six sub-divisions.
Marcus A. Ketter (51) today became Chief Financial Officer of GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft. His predecessor Dr. Helmut Schmale (62) left the company on May 17, 2019, after more than 10 years in this position.
Düsseldorf-based engineering group GEA posted order intake of around EUR 1.2 billion for the first quarter of 2019, a rise of 7.6 percent.
Technology group GEA has announced its definitive figures for fiscal 2018. In addition, Stefan Klebert, GEA’s new CEO, presented his analysis of the status quo and outlined the immediate action the company will take.
Today, Stefan Klebert (53) became chairman of the Executive Board of the GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft, a body that he joined on November 15, 2018. His predecessor, Jürg Oleas (61), has left the company, as planned, after spending more than 14 years as head of the Group.
The Supervisory Board of GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft has appointed Marcus A. Ketter (50) to the company’s Executive Board with effect from May 20, 2019. He is set to succeed the long-standing Chief Financial Officer, Dr. Helmut Schmale (62), who will leave the company as of May 17, 2019.