WACKER Back on Track for Growth in 2014

20-May-2014 - Germany

Following a solid first quarter, Wacker Chemie AG anticipates sales and earnings growth for full-year 2014. This was underscored by Rudolf Staudigl, CEO of the Munich-based chemical company, at its 2014 Annual Shareholders’ Meeting. “This year, we are on track for growth again, as seen in our first-quarter figures,” said Staudigl in his speech to some 1,000 shareholders at the International Congress Center in Munich. In Q1 2014, WACKER’s sales and earnings figures were markedly better compared with last year’s first and fourth quarters.

Staudigl reaffirmed the full-year forecast. Relative to last year (€4.48 billion), he expected Group sales to rise by a mid-single-digit percentage. EBITDA is projected to climb at least 10 percent above the prior-year figure (€679 million).

Turning to WACKER’s centennial this year, Staudigl said he was confident about the years ahead: “The qualities that have always characterized WACKER are entrepreneurship and the courage to initiate change. Our company’s history offers plenty of examples.” PVC, he added, is a case in point – the Group’s main sales driver of the 1980s was given up entirely in 2000. WACKER, he continued, has become more and more international over the years. For example, it has strongly expanded its presence in China, a key growth market. WACKER’s flexibility and willingness to change, said Staudigl, have always been based on people who identify very closely with the company and reliably promote its success with unswerving commitment – from one generation to the next. “With this combination of tradition and progress, expertise and experience, and innovation and identification, WACKER is headed for a good future in the coming decades,” emphasized the CEO.

For 2013, WACKER is distributing a dividend totaling €24.8 million to shareholders, compared with €29.8 million a year earlier. The dividend per dividend-bearing share is €0.50, after €0.60 a year ago.

Other news from the department business & finance

Most read news

More news from our other portals

Discover the latest developments in battery technology!