Evonik makes further progress in the third quarter
Evonik increased adjusted EBITDA to EUR639 million in the third quarter, an increase of 11 percent compared with the third quarter of 2016. This was mainly due to better earnings in the Resource Efficiency and Performance Materials segments.
A positive factor was the contribution made by the specialty additives business that Evonik acquired from the US company Air Products at the beginning of the year. Furthermore, the silica business acquired from J. M. Huber at the start of September made a contribution for the first time.
Sales rose to EUR3.56 billion
“Having completed the acquisition of Huber’s silica business, we reaped the benefit of both acquisitions for the first time,” said Executive Board Chairman Christian Kullmann. “The integration of both businesses is proceeding rapidly, and we have already realised initial synergies of around EUR10 million. Sales rose to EUR3.56 billion in the third quarter, adjusted net income increased to EUR275 million and adjusted earnings per share improved to EUR0.59. The company’s adjusted EBITDA margin was 18 percent, almost one percentage point higher than in the first six months.
Outlook specified
Evonik confirmed that it will raise both sales and the operating profit in 2017. Following the positive performance in the third quarter, adjusted EBITDA is now expected to be in the upper half of the EUR2.2 billion to EUR2.4 billion range (2016: EUR2.165 billion).
Segment performance
Resource Efficiency: Sales grew 22 percent to EUR1.36 billion in the third quarter. The silica business benefited from strong demand from the tire industry, and sales volumes of oil additives increased thanks to higher demand from the automotive, construction and transportation industries. Consolidation of the operations acquired from Air Products and Huber contributed 14 percentage points of the sales growth. Adjusted EBITDA rose to EUR312 million in the Resource Efficiency segment.
Performance Materials: Sales rose 15 percent to EUR919 million in the third quarter. High demand, especially from the coatings and automotive sectors, combined with continuing tight supply, led to higher selling prices. The adjusted EBITDA of the Performance Materials segment improved to EUR174 million.
