Cewe Color: More sales, more profit

The operational result increased 50.9 percent to Euro 28.2 million (US-$ 38.6 million); earnings before taxes rose 57.4 percent to Euro 26.4 million (US-$ 36.2 million). The net result soared from Euro 6.7 million (US-$ 9.2 million) in 2009 to Euro 13.7 million (US-$ 18.8 million). Earnings per share more than doubled from Euro 1 (US-$ 1.37) to Euro 2.02 (US-$ 2.78), matching the management’s forecast.

“In addition to our innovative dynamics and intensified marketing activities, our investments in a high-performance industrial scalable production are paying off,” commented Dr. Rolf Hollander, CEO of Cewe Color Holding AG. “In the coming years, we want to continue our value-oriented growth driven by the Cewe Photo Book and the development of a commercial digital printing business.”

In the fourth quarter of 2010, sales of Cewe Color grew by 17.7 percent to Euro 150 million (US-$ 205.5 million), resulting in a record for the full year. Sales of the Cewe Photo Book increased 19 percent to 4.3 million pieces in 2010; other value-added photo products also contributed to the company’s growth (photo calendars +45 percent, greeting cards +57 percent and wall decoration articles +90 percent). Turnover per image processed increased from 0.122 Euro (US-$ 0.167) in 2009 to Euro 0.135 (US-$ 0.185), while the total number of images processed declined slightly by 3.8 percent to 2.5 billion units, but exceeded the forecast of 2.35 billion images. The number of analog pictures processed decreased 34 percent to 368 million prints in line with the market development. Analog photo processing accounted for only 15 percent of the total volume at Cewe Color in 2010.

For 2011, Cewe Color expects further growth with sales in the range of Euro 447 to 460 million (US-$ 612.4 to 631.4 million) and an operational result (EBIT) in the range of Euro 28 to 31 million (US-$ 38.4 to 52.5 million). Earnings per share are expected in the range of Euro 2.36 to 2.80 (US-$ 3.23 to 3.84).

The management of Cewe Color has issued a proposal to the company’s Supervisory Board and General Meeting to increase the dividend fpr shareholders. In 2009, the dividend was Euro 1.05 (US-$ 1.44).