The Germany-based company, which has significant business in the cosmetics and personal care field, said that sales for 2012 showed an overall increase of 5 per cent to €1.7m, while EBITDA was also up 5 per cent to €323m.
Gains come despite sales volumes stagnating
"In 2012, we proved once again that we are able to achieve profitable growth, even in a rapidly changing environment," stated Dr. Matthias Wolfgruber, CEO of Altana, who was speaking at the press conference on the company’s 2012 financial statements.
"This was possible because we have implemented our growth strategy consistently and acted flexibly.“
The company said that the sales growth came despite the fact that overall sales volumes stagnated during the year, and was due to increases in new markets, together with a shift in emphasis to higher-grade specialty products, as well as price increases.
Acquisition positively impacts results
The company also said that that acquisitions positively affected the overall sales growth by approximately 1 per cent, while positive currency exchange rates impacted the figure by around 3 per cent.
The company said that sales in its BYK Additives and Instruments division were up by 6 per cent to €618m, while sales for the ACTEGA coatings and sealants division were up by 12 per cent to €334m – the latter being driven by the acquisition of the Colorchemie Group in mid-2011.
The company’s Eckart Effect Pigments division reported that sales for the year were down 2 per cent, a result that was put down to an overall market slow-down.
On a geographic basis, sales in the company’s biggest market, Europe, were down by 2 percent on the previous year, a result that was particularly impacted by a decrease in demand in Southern Europe.
Sales in the Americas lead the gains
The slower pace of the European marketed was made up for by the pace in the Americas, and to a lesser extent, the Asian region.
The North and South American markets showed nominal growth of 10 percent during 2012, while in Asia the market was impacted by a slower growth rate in China for the first half of the year, while the figure rebounded into double digit figures for the last six month period.
Looking ahead to the full year 2013, the company said that it forecasts further uncertainty in the European market, while other markets will continue to perform well, particularly in the US, where an expansion of the company’s Wallingford site will form part of a total investment for the year of more than €100m.
Overall, the company expects that group sales for 2013 will rise in the lower single digit figures.