DGAP-News

Wacker Chemie AG: Annual Shareholders' Meeting 2017: WACKER intends to continue its growth in the current fiscal year

DGAP-News: Wacker Chemie AG / Key word(s): AGM/EGM Wacker Chemie AG: Annual Shareholders' Meeting 2017: WACKER intends to continue its growth in the current fiscal year 19.05.2017 / 13:13 The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

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• EXECUTIVE AND SUPERVISORY BOARDS' PROPOSALS ADOPTED BY LARGE MAJORITY OF SHAREHOLDERS
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• DIVIDEND OF EUR2.00 FOR FISCAL 2016
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• 2017 SALES AND EARNINGS FORECAST AFFIRMED
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Munich, May 19, 2017 - After a good year in 2016, Wacker Chemie AG expects continued sales growth in the current year. Rudolf Staudigl, CEO of the Munich-based chemical company, underscored this point at WACKER's 2017 Annual Shareholders' Meeting. "We want to lift our sales by a mid-single-digit percentage this year," said Staudigl in his speech to some 1,000 shareholders at the International Congress Center in Munich. In the first quarter of 2017, WACKER's sales and EBITDA figures were markedly better both year over year and quarter over quarter. On the other hand, full-year EBITDA (adjusted for special income) is forecast to decline by a mid-single-digit percentage, primarily due to rising raw-material prices. Staudigl thereby confirmed the annual forecast, which the chemical company had updated in its Q1 2017 report following deconsolidation of Siltronic.


In his speech, Staudigl gave details of the company's direction in the years ahead and explained the strategic goals WACKER will be focusing on until 2020. "We will continue expanding our production capacities, with capital expenditures staying below depreciation," said the CEO. "We want to grow faster than the chemical-sector average and achieve attractive margins with our products. At our chemical divisions, we are targeting an EBITDA margin of over 16 percent. For our polysilicon business, the target margin is in excess of 30 percent." According to Staudigl, a further priority is the development of new products with a focus on sustainable energy generation, electromobility and energy conservation. As examples, he mentioned high-performance silicones for electric cars, adhesive additives for wind turbines and dispersible polymer powders for building insulation systems. Moreover, the company intends to work on the process efficiency of its production plants. The goal is to achieve a reduction in raw-material and energy consumption, coupled with higher output.