Financial performance in January-March
• Sales amounted to SEK 1,055 (1,051) million. Adjusted for acquisitions and currency effects, organic growth was -4%.
• Operating profit was SEK 91 (112) million. Adjusted operating profit was SEK 93 (107) million, adjusted for revaluations of operating assets and liabilities in foreign currency.
• The operating margin amounted to 8.6% (10.7%). The adjusted operating margin was 8.8% (10.2%), adjusted for currency revaluations.
• Profit after financial items was SEK 78 (104) million.
• Profit after tax amounted to SEK 64 (85) million, corresponding to SEK 2.20 (2.92) per share.
• Total cash flow after investments, including acquisitions, amounted to SEK 84 (49) million, or SEK 2.90 (1.69) per share. Adjusted for acquisition-related payments made in the first quarter of the previous year, operating cash flow after investments was SEK 84 (72) million.

CEO’s Comment – Despite the cautious start to the year, we increased our operating margin on the previous year-end. Our ambitions are higher, and we still anticipate a gradual improvement in the year.

” In the first quarter, we achieved sales of SEK 1,055 million, which was consistent with sales for the first quarter of the previous year. This is in line with our estimates and in the lower interval of the guidance we issued in our Q4 Report when we anticipated a cautious start to 2024. The weaker business cycle that impacted our demand in the second half-year 2023 was still having an effect on our customers’ aggregate demand.

In the first quarter, we achieved an underlying operating margin of 8.8%. We view the fact that we have widened our operating margin on the previous quarter positively, but our ambitions for our operating margin are significantly higher than this. The fact that sales were in the lower interval of our guidance had a significant impact on profitability. Growth generates profitability, and when the growth our customers have been signaling and placed orders for doesn’t appear, this obviously has an effect. Our plants have planned their staffing and resources based on a level not realised because of unusually severe delays to customer orders.

I’m pleased that we’re continuing to report positive cash flow, completely in line with our plans. The inventory build-up that impacted us during the electronic component shortage has turned, and the inventory levels at our plants are still reducing. For the first quarter, our operating cash flow was SEK 84 million.

We now anticipate the cautious start to the year that we’ve witnessed in the first quarter continuing some way into the second quarter. For the second quarter, we anticipate sales of SEK 1,025–1,075 million. We still expect progressive improvement in the year with full-year 2024 sales of SEK 4.3-4.7 billion and an operating margin of 9.5-10.5%.” says Johannes Lind-Widestam, president and CEO.

NOTEs Interim Report for Q1 2024 is now available in PDF format on the corporate web site, www.note-ems.com, and attached to this message. Today at 12.00 CET, NOTE organizes a presentation for analysts, media and investors, where CEO and President Johannes Lind-Widestam presents the report. The Interim Report for January-June will be published on 15 July.