Q1 / 2020/21 – AT&S starts well into the new financial year

• Excellent crisis management and stability of business structure support positive business development
• Quarterly revenue increases to € 247.9 million (PY: € 222.7 million), EBITDA margin of 15.9% at prior-year level
• Q2: Revenue expected at prior-year level and EBITDA margin in the range of 20% to 25%
• Investments in IC substrate and module business to be consistently continued
• AT&S considers market trends intact and adheres to medium-term guidance

Leoben – AT&S reports a very good first quarter. Although the COVID-19 pandemic changed day-to-day life in the market and in the company, AT&S was able to compensate for the effects on ongoing production at the locations and consequently for the economic impact. In these turbulent times, marked by economic and market uncertainty, the stability of AT&S’s successful business structure and the excellent market position have become evident. Close cooperation with customers, the focus on high-end technologies and high quality standards prove to be the basis of AT&S’s success.

Thanks to the excellent crisis management, AT&S generated consolidated revenue of € 247.9 million (PY: € 222.7 million). The broader customer and application portfolio as well as increases in sales volume of IC substrates, mobile devices and in the Industrial segment had a positive impact. Revenue in the Automotive segment declined due to difficult market conditions.

EBITDA rose from € 34.9 million to € 39.5 million. The increase in earnings is primarily due to the higher consolidated revenue, taking into account that investments in research & development were intensified to prepare for future technology generations and to pursue the modularisation strategy. These expenditures make the company future-proof and significantly expand the earnings potential in the medium term.

The EBITDA margin amounted to 15.9% and was therefore at the prior-year level of 15.7%. EBIT improved from € -0.6 million to € 0.2 million. The EBIT margin was 0.1% (previous year: -0.3%). Finance costs – net declined from € -1.7 million to € -5.2 million due to lower interest and currency results.
The asset and financial position remained solid at the reporting date. Total assets rose by 6.8% to € 2.0 billion compared to 31 March 2020 due to additions to assets and technology updates.
Equity decreased by -4.5% to € 726.4 million, which was related to earnings and negative currency effects. Based on the decline in equity and the increase in total assets, the equity ratio, at 36.7% was lower than at 31 March 2020. Net debt rose by 20.9% from € 246.7 million to € 298.3 million. Cash and cash equivalents totalled € 387.6 million. In addition, AT&S also has financial assets of € 224.5 million and unused credit lines of € 419.6 to finance the future investment programme and short-term repayments.

Outlook 2020/21
Despite the downward revisions of economic forecasts, the global megatrends in the electronics industry are still intact overall – especially due to progressing digitalisation, the new 5G mobile communication standard and massive data volume growth. AT&S is excellently positioned in this market and well equipped to overcome the crisis.

The expectations for the individual segments of AT&S for the current financial year are as follows:

• Product launches may be delayed in the Mobile Devices segment due to uncertain consumer behaviour and as a result of low visibility.
• In the Automotive segment, no quick recovery to the pre-crisis level is expected for the automotive market.
• From today’s perspective, the development of the Industrial segment will be comparable to the previous year.
• Slight growth is expected for medical applications for the full year.
• The demand for IC substrates will remain strong according to current forecasts.

Operationally, AT&S will concentrate on optimally utilising existing and building new capacities, especially for IC substrates and module printed circuit boards in Chongqing in the current year, and above all continue to drive the expansion of its business performance.

The upheavals caused by the pandemic have strongly affected predictability and lead to uncertainty in forecasts. AT&S will therefore report on recent events in the markets and in the company on an ongoing basis throughout the financial year and update the outlook as soon as the economic framework conditions can be better quantified. Based on the current information, AT&S expects a continued solid performance in the second quarter with revenue at the level of the previous year and an EBITDA margin in the target range of 20% to 25%.

Investment activities in the financial year 2020/21
AT&S will continue its investment programme for new capacities and technologies in the current financial year as previously announced. In line with spending discipline, a reduced budget of up to € 80 million is planned for basic investments (maintenance and technology upgrades) depending on the market development. As part of the strategic projects, the management plans investments totalling up to € 410 million for the financial year 2020/21 – depending on the progress of projects – plus € 30 million due to period shifts between the financial years.