EANS-News: Wolford Aktiengesellschaft / Detailed Figures Presented for the First Half of 2016/17

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6-month report

* Revenue decline of 15% due to weak customer frequency and product
deliveries delayed to the subsequent quarter * Slightly positive
operating results in the second quarter cannot offset first-
quarter loss * Third quarter begins with slight upswing in revenues
in November

Vienna/Bregenz, December 16, 2016:Wolford AG, which is listed on the
Vienna Stock Exchange, generated revenues of EUR 67.62 million in the
first half of the current financial year (May 2016 to October 2016),
comprising a year-on-year decline of 14.7%. The drop in revenue
equaled 13.1% when adjusted for currency effects, in particular the
decrease in value of the British pound. As a consequence of weaker
customer frequency and a delivery date shifted to the next quarterly
period, second-quarter revenues were down 11.9% to EUR 39.88 million.
Operating results (EBIT) in the second quarter only turned slightly
positive to EUR 0.03 million. Against the backdrop of the substantial
loss generated in the first quarter, EBIT in the first six months of
the current financial year amounted to EUR -8.24 million (previous
year: EUR -0.28 million).

Delayed delivery dates and weak customer frequency

A substantial portion of the revenue decline of EUR 11.62 million in
the first six months of the 2016/17 financial year can be attributed
to the development of the wholesale business. As a consequence of the
delay in a delivery date for the fall/winter collection, first
quarter figures did not include revenues from so- called pre-season
orders to the amount of EUR 3.19 million. Up until now Wolford has
only succeeded in partly compensating for the revenue shortfall. In
addition, Wolford delayed another delivery date for this collection
to be closer to the Christmas season and thus to the third quarter,
so that second-quarter revenues were also down by about EUR 3 million
from the prior-year level. On balance, revenues of the wholesale
segment fell by 20% in the first half-year.

However, Wolford-owned retail stores also reported a perceptible 12%
drop in revenues, not least due to the lack of customer frequency in
the boutiques, which other clothing retailers also suffered from. The
garment sector in important European core markets was sluggish in
August and September 2016. For example, sales on the German fashion
market were down by 3% in August in a year- on-year comparison, and
even fell by more than 12 % in September.

Negative EBIT and earnings before tax

As a result of the weak revenue development, operating earnings
(EBIT) in the first six months of the current financial year amounted
to EUR -8.24 million, compared to EUR -0.28 million in the previous
year. EBIT in the prior-year period benefited from the sale of
non-core rental apartments (other operating income to the amount of
EUR 1.09 million). Adjusted for this special effect, EBIT in the
first six months of the 2016/17 financial year was EUR 6.87 million
below the comparable figure in 2015/16.

The financial result at EUR -0.40 million represents an improvement
from the prior-year figure of EUR -0.51 million, which can be
particularly attributed to the positive valuation effects on
financial assets. Against the backdrop described above, earnings
before tax in the first half-year totaled EUR -8.64 million, down
from EUR -0.80 million in the previous year. The income tax expense
amounted to EUR 0.19 million (previous year: EUR -0.10 million).
Accordingly, earnings after tax equaled EUR -8.45 million compared to
the prior- year figure of EUR -0.90 million. Earnings per share were
EUR -1.73, down from EUR -0.18 in the first half of 2015/16.

Slight upswing in revenues in November

Wolford succeeded in breaking the downward revenue trend in November
2016, and achieved slight growth once again in its own retail stores
on a like-for-like basis. The third-quarter recovery is even more
pronounced in the wholesale business. Here Wolford will partly be
able to compensate for the revenue drop in the first half of 2016/17
after delaying the last delivery date for this year's fall/winter
fashion collection to the beginning of November and thus to the third
quarter. This was designed to ensure that the products would be newly
on display at the point of sale at an optimal time.

Outlook

Most recently Wolford predicted a slight drop in revenues and
negative operating earnings in the low single-digit range for the
current financial year. The ongoing program of measures designed to
sustainably increase revenues and profitability should show initial
positive cost effects in the second half of the financial year,
whereas a large part of the restructuring expenses was reported in
the first six-month period. Nevertheless, it will be a challenge to
attain the communicated business targets in the light of the
company's revenue development in the first half of 2016/17. The
third-quarter revenue development will be the decisive factor in this
regard.

The Half-Year Report 2016/17 can be viewed and downloaded in the
Investor Relations section of the company's Website at
company.wolford.com: http://company.wolford.com/wp-content/uploads/20
16/12/Wolford_HY_Report_2016_17.pdf

Earnings

Data 05 -10/16 05 -10/15 Chg. in % 2015/16
Revenues in EUR mill. 67.62 79.24 -15 162.40
EBIT in EUR mill. -8.24 -0.28 >100 1.55
Earnings
before tax in EUR mill. -8.64 -0.80 >100 0.62
Earnings
after tax in EUR mill. -8.45 -0.90 >100 -6.19
Capital
expenditure in EUR mill. 4.89 3.60 +36 7.30
Free cash
flow in EUR mill. -18.70 -7.33 >100 -2.35
Employees
(on average) FTE 1,558 1,578 -1 1,571

Balance
Sheet Data 31.10.2016 31.10.2015 Chg. in % 30.04.2016
Equity in EUR mill. 58.73 73.28 -20 68.15
Net debt in EUR mill. 40.47 25.50 +59 20.86
Working
capital in EUR mill. 56.61 43.74 +29 43.15
Balance
sheet total in EUR mill. 153.02 154.28 -1 139.25
Equity ratio in % 38 48 -21 49
Gearing in % 69 35 +97 31

Stock Exchange
Data 05 -10/16 05 -10/15 Chg. in % 2015/16
Earnings per
share in EUR -1.73 -0.18 >100 0.21
Share price
high in EUR 26.01 23.98 +8 24.12
Share price
low in EUR 22.67 20.89 +9 18.75
Share price at
end of period in EUR 22.85 22.42 +2 24.00
Shares

outstanding (weighted) in 1,000 4,912 4,900
+1 4,900 Market capitalization (ultimo) in EUR mill.
114.25 112.10 +2 120.00

About Wolford AG Wolford AG, which has its headquarters in Bregenz on
Lake Constance (Austria), has 16 subsidiaries and markets its
products in more than 60 countries via 262 mono-brand points of sales
(company-owned and partner-operated), around 3,000 distribution
partners, and online. Listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange since 1995,
in the 2015/16 financial year (May 1, 2015 - April 30, 2016) the
company had around 1,570 employees and generated revenues of EUR
162.4 million. Founded in 1950, Wolford has since grown to become the
leading global brand for luxurious legwear, exclusive lingerie, and
high-quality bodywear.

Further inquiry note:
Wolford AG
Maresa Hoffmann
Referentin Investor Relations & Corporate Communications
Tel.: +43 5574 690 1258
investor@wolford.com | company.wolford.com

end of announcement euro adhoc
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company: Wolford Aktiengesellschaft
Wolfordstrasse 1
A-6900 Bregenz
phone: +43 (0) 5574 690-1268
FAX: +43 (0) 5574 690-1219
mail: investor@wolford.com
WWW: company.wolford.com
sector: Textiles & Clothing
ISIN: AT0000834007
indexes: ATX Prime, ATX GP
stockmarkets: free trade: Frankfurt, regulated dealing: Wien, ADR: New York
language: English

Original-Content von: Wolford Aktiengesellschaft, übermittelt durch news aktuell