KLÖCKNER & CO SE ANNOUNCES BEST QUARTERLY RESULTS FOR SIX YEARS

• Operating income (EBITDA), at 77 Mio. €, slightly above guidance range of €65 million to €75 million
• Sales via digital channels increased from 12% in the fourth quarter of 2016 to 14% in the first quarter of 2017
• Very robust earnings trend sustained with EBITDA guidance of €60 million to €70 million for second quarter

Duisburg, April 26, 2017 – Klöckner & Co reports substantial, mainly price-driven sales growth of 15.6% to €1.6 billion in the first quarter of 2017. As a result of the improved price environment and additionally boosted by the effects of restructuring and optimization measures, operating income (EBITDA) more than quadrupled, from €16 million in the prior-year period to €77 million in the first quarter of 2017. At €36 million, net income was well back into positive figures (Q1 2016: net loss of €14 million). Earnings per share improved accordingly from a negative €0.14 to a positive €0.36.

Whereas earnings in the first quarter were also aided by rising prices, Klöckner & Co expects that price levels will remain stable in the current quarter. Overall, operating income (EBITDA) of €60 million to €70 million and once again positive net income are forecast for the second quarter of 2017. Notably due to the significantly better first quarter, a slight uptick in demand and this year´s impacts of the One Europe program, a noticable increase in EBITDA and net income is anticipated for the year as a whole.

Gisbert Rühl, CEO of Klöckner & Co SE: “The strong improvement in earnings performance shows that we have taken the right steps. As a result, we are also fully on course to meet our targets for the year as a whole.”

Klöckner & Co additionally made further progress in the digital transformation of the business. The percentage of sales generated via digital channels thus further increased in the initial quarter of 2017 to 14%, compared with 12% in the fourth quarter of 2016.

In April, through its venture capital subsidiary kloeckner.v, Klöckner & Co acquired a minority share in technology startup BigRep, thus entering the growth market of additive manufacturing. BigRep is developer and producer of the world’s biggest commercially available 3D printer. It also provides consulting on additive manufacturing system solutions. As well as taking a financial stake in BigRep, Klöckner & Co plans to deploy industrial-scale 3D printers across its location network in Europe and the USA. The investment in BigRep is consistent with both components of the Klöckner strategy – digitalization and higher value-added products and services. The outlook for this market segment is also fundamentally highly promising, with annual growth of some 20% expected through to 2020.

Klöckner & Co has also made good progress in implementing its major investment of €35 million to further raise the proportion of sales generated with higher value-added products and services: At the Company’s service center in Bönen, North Rhine-Westphalia, a slitting line for processing aluminum flat products for the automotive and manufacturing industries will go into operation in the second quarter. Construction of an additional cut-to-length line has already begun. The aluminum service center is set to reach its full capacity totaling 80,000 tons of aluminum per year in the course of 2018.