Nov. 9 - Altia Group's growth continued and its operating profit exceeded that of the corresponding period the previous year, but due to non-recurring items the company reported a loss for January-September 2007.
July-September 2007 in brief
· Net sales increased by 4.2 per cent to EUR 119.1 (114.3) million.
· Operating profit excluding non-recurring items was EUR 4.9 (6.0) million and EUR -55.8 (6.9) million including non-recurring items.
· Net profit amounted to EUR 3.0 (3.8) million, and EUR -51.3 (4.4) million including non-recurring items.
· The operating profit for July-September was affected by non-recurring items with a net amount of EUR 60.8 (0.0) million.
January-September 2007 in brief
· Net sales increased by 8.6 per cent to EUR 355.3 (327.1) million.
· Operating profit excluding non-recurring items was EUR 10.4 (9.4) million and EUR -51.8 (12.1) million including non-recurring items.
· Net profit excluding non-recurring items amounted to EUR 5.4 (4.6) million and EUR -50.0 (6.5) million including non-recurring items.
· The operating profit for January-September was affected by non-recurring items with a net amount of EUR 62.2 (0.0) million.
o non-recurring impairments, expenses and reservations totalling EUR 64.5 million, and
o income of EUR 2.3 million was received from the sale of the vinegar business.
· Equity ratio was 34.8 per cent (41.6 per cent) on 30 September 2007.
· Gearing was 67.1 per cent (54.5 per cent) on 30 September 2007.
Impairment of the Group's goodwill July-September 2007
The figures reported for the third quarter include a total of EUR 60.0 million in impairment of the Group's goodwill and intangible assets. During the third quarter, Altia made a write-down of EUR 40 million on the Group's intangible assets and goodwill due to the development of the profitability of the cash-generating unit comprising of the Swedish business units and the increase in interest rates. Furthermore, a sudden increase in the prices of raw materials for the company's own products and the increased interest rates resulted in an write-down of EUR 20 million on the Group's intangible assets and goodwill with an effect on the Finnish cash-generating unit.