In the third quarter of 2018, industrial services provider Bilfinger once again substantially increased the orders received, revenue, and earnings. Adjusted EBITA of €22 million (prior year: €21 million), while net profit improved to €-1 million (prior year: €-21 million). Orders received (+5% / organically +6%) and revenue (+5% / organically +8%) likewise were both up on the prior year.
“We have delivered a stable third quarter and we are pleased with the performance of our business. We have made further progress in the build-up phase of our Bilfinger 2020 Strategy and are on track towards achieving the growth targets we set for ourselves.”
Bilfinger CEO Tom Blades
Orders received by the Group increased compared to a strong prior-year quarter, growing by 5% (organically +6%) to €1,105 million (prior year: €1,054 million). The order backlog increased consequently to €2,828 million (prior year: €2,536 million). Revenue was up by 5% (organically +8%) at €1,052 million (prior year: €1,001 million) as a conversion of the increase in orders received. Accordingly, the book-to-bill ratio has reached 1.1 in the third quarter.
Adjusted EBITA increased slightly, improved net profit
Adjusted EBITA improved slightly in the third quarter, reaching €22 million (prior year: €21 million). At 2.1%, the adjusted EBITA margin was at the prior-year level. It bears noting in this regard that the adjusted EBITA of the prior-year quarter was influenced by special items: Approved change orders in the prior year for the E&T segment had had a positive impact, returning to a more normal level of €4 million. The MMO business segment saw a significant increase of the adjusted EBITA to €37 million (prior year: €29 million).
Outlook for 2018 confirmed
Bilfinger confirms the outlook for financial year 2018. Organic growth in orders received will be in the mid single-digit percentage range. Revenue development will be organically stable to slightly growing.
