Interim report January-September 2007
Continued improvement for Doro: Q3 report (1 Jul-30 Sep 2007) • Jérôme Arnaud Doro's new CEO • Dramatic improvement of profit after tax, SEK 0.9 million (-13 m) • Sales amounted to SEK 81 million (104 m) after completed disposals • Former loss-making areas showing positive results • Strong growth for Business Electronics and Care, +50% • More promising product launches over the period • EPS after tax, SEK 0.05 (-0,74) • Positive cash flow from current activities Chairman of the Board, Bo Kastensson's comments; “Doro is reporting a profit for the third quarter, which is a considerable improvement compared to last year. The major losses in the Home business area have turned around to a small profit. The initiative to develop the growth areas of Care and Business electronics, in which conditions for profit growth are good, can therefore be intensified. The Board has today appointed Jérôme Arnaud as Doro's new CEO. Jérôme is currently the MD of Doro France and responsible for the Care and Business Electronics business areas for the group. Due to the change of CEO, Rune Torbjörnsen will leave his position and other assignments within the Doro Group. Torbjörnsen will assist the Board for a transitional period. The reason for the change of CEO is that Doro has undergone major changes over the past two years. The company is now entering a phase with a stabilised business in the Home business area and excellent opportunities for growth in the Care and Business Electronics business area. Jérôme Arnaud's experience in these business areas makes him, according to the Board, suitable to lead the company through this development phase. Jérôme Arnaud was born in 1963, lives in France and has been MD of Doro's French business since 2000. Profit for the Group in Q3 Dramatic growth in the Care and Business Electronics business areas, with higher margins has helped towards a significantly better result. The Home business area also showed a profit for the quarter, partly due to continued cost trimming. The lower US dollar has had a positive effect on results. Sales amounted to SEK 81 million (104 m) The disposal of the loss-making businesses in Australia and Poland has meant lower sales than for the same period last year. Sales in comparable businesses were in line with last year but with a greater share of sales in the business areas with high margins. Gross margin strengthened The gross margin has been strengthened due to Doro's business areas having improved gross margins, rising by 10 percentage points to around 27% of sales, while products with low margins in home telephony have successively been disposed of. Furthermore, stock control has improved, which has cut stock depreciation. Overheads have fallen Overheads are 20% lower than for the same period in 2006 and have fallen partly as a result of the loss-making businesses being disposed of and partly through the rationalisation scheme. Operating profit (EBIT) up SEK 10 million In total, the operating profit for the period improved from a loss last year of SEK 9 million to a profit this year of SEK 1 million. The Group showed a positive operating profit of SEK 3.1 million (-30.0 m) for the first nine months of the year. Business areas Doro is active in three business areas: Home, which is mainly home telephony and represents 73% of this year's sales (83% last year), Care, which specialises in telephony for the elderly, 12% (6%) and Business Electronics, mainly specialising in business telephony, 15% (11%). Home, which previously represented a major part of Doro's losses is continuing to stabilise with successively improved profit margins. Doro began supplying the new NeoBio range in September, with its innovative design. Care is continuing to show signs of strong growth and is focusing on the growing market with specially developed products for senior citizens. The business area is currently investing in the renewed product portfolio and in developing new distributors for a larger geographic coverage. A new series of products will be launched in the second half of 2007, which will include GSM telephones with functional design, to be delivered in Q4. Business Electronics has continued its growth through better distribution of existing products. New products will be launched in Q4 2007 and Q1 2008, including IP telephony products, which are expected to further improve growth. The Care and Business Electronics business areas now have a stronger organisation and are showing a combined growth of 50% compared to the same period last year. Regions Doro's biggest markets since the New Year are France (43% of sales), Nordic Region (35%) and the UK (11%). During the quarter the UK has progressed positively and Care especially is showing strong growth. Outlook Doro launched a number of new products in Q3. Lower costs, better gross margins and a seasonally higher number of sales provide excellent opportunities for a positive earnings trend. Balance sheet and Cash flow Cash flow from current activities has improved significantly and was SEK 2 million for the quarter. Since the New Year, cash flow has been negatively hit due to structural costs, which impacted on 2006's results but which were paid during the period and amounted to SEK 21 million. Furthermore, the working capital for the same period rose by around SEK 7 million. Doro's net debt remains unchanged and available borrowings now total SEK 60 million, while the equity/assets ratio is 25%. Parent company The parent company's net sales for the first nine months of the year amounted to SEK 17 million (16 m). The loss before tax amounted to SEK 24 million (-15 m). Significant risks and instability factors Doro's risks and instability factors are mainly related to supplier disruption, customer relations and currency exchange rate fluctuations. Apart from these risks and instability factors, which are described in the Annual Report on pages 21-22, no other risks of any significance have been identified during the last period. Doro's new CEO Doro's Board decided at today's Board meeting to appoint a new CEO. Doro's new CEO will be Jérôme Arnaud, who is currently MD of Doro France and the Care and Business Electronics business area. He is a graduate engineer and before coming to Doro worked with business development and marketing at Matra Nortel. He has also worked in sales towards the South and Latin American markets and was stationed for two years in Argentina. Future reports The Board has decided that the financial statement for 2007 will be released on 12 February 2008. Quarterly reports are available on the internet at: www.doro.com. This quarterly report has been drawn up in accordance with the same accounting principles as the last Annual Report and has not been subject to a review by the company's auditors. For more information For further information, please contact: Chairman of the Board Bo Kastensson Tel: +46 (0)46 280 50 03 CFO Stefan Sjölin, Tel: +46 (0)46 280 50 62 Lund, 24 October 2007 The Board, Doro AB (publ) Co. Reg. No 556161-9429 Doro is listed on the OMX Nordic Exchange Stockholm - Mindre Bolag - Telekom/IT Magistratsvägen 10 SE-226 43 Lund, Sweden Telephone: +46 46 280 50 60 www.doro.com About Doro With over 30 years' experience in telephony Doro is today characterised by innovative and user-friendly consumer electronics products. The company develops markets and sells a wide range of products in three business units: Home Electronics, Business Electronics and Care Electronics. The company's products are sold in more than 30 countries worldwide through a variety of retail outlets, including electronics stores, online stores and specialised channels. The company had sales of SEK 433 million in 2006. Doro's shares are quoted on the Stockholm Stock Exchange, Nordic list, Small companies. Read more about Doro at www.doro.com
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