STRONG INCREASE OF PROFITS WITH LOWER TURNOVER IN THIRD QUARTER CONFIRMS CONFIDENCE IN EXPECTATIONS FOR 2002
Kortrijk, November 7, 2002. In the third quarter BARCO realized a current result before taxes and before amortization of consolidation goodwill of 11.6 million euro on a turnover of 145.8 million euro. Compared to the current result of 1.4 million euro in the same period of 2001, this is a significant improvement. In the reported quarter orders increased by over 11 % compared to the third quarter of the previous fiscal year and now amount to 163.6 million euro. In the third quarter of 2002, turnover showed a decline of 5 % compared to the turnover in the same period of 2001. However, there was still a very clear positive effect on this turnover caused by the strong order book of the first semester of that year, before the worldwide economic recession.
For the third consecutive quarter, the order volume exceeds the turnover. For the fourth quarter BARCO expects a turnover between 175 and 185 million euro. Over the full year 2002 this will result in a slight decrease of turnover compared to 2001. As for the current result before taxes and before amortization of consolidation goodwill, the expectations for the fourth quarter are between 21 and 25 million euro, as a result of which BARCO expects for the full year 2002 an increase of at least 10% compared to 2001. This is in line with previous expectations and leads to a current result per share over the full year 2002 between 3.80 and 4 euro. This means an increase of almost 40% in comparison to 2001. An increased gross margin, from 55% in the first semester to 56% in the third quarter and a further optimization of the cost structure have positively contributed to this result.
See also www.barco.com for the audiocast of the communication of the results on Thursday November 7 2002, as of 11:55 p.m. (GMT +1).
About BARCO
BARCO has three key activities which are all active in Image Processing. BarcoProjection is in various markets of large screen visualization. BarcoView develops and manufactures display systems for life critical applications, while BarcoVision is in systems for visual inspection and quality control. In 2001, the entire BARCO group delivered a turnover of 792 million EUR. BARCO has a network of subsidiaries, distributors and agents in 97 countries throughout the world. BARCO has been quoted on the Brussels Stock Exchange since 1986, and is now quoted on Brussels/Euronext. BARCO is a BEL 20 and a Next 150 company and is a component of the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes.
You can find more information about BARCO on the web: www.barco.com
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