PDF, 3.2 MB - Pfleiderer AG

Future Earnings
How those sectors develop where the Group’s customers are active will largely determine the
way in which sales and earnings develop in the Pfleiderer Group.
There is some guarded optimism among the domestic furniture industry, and this is reflected in
an equally cautious forecast on domestic sales by Pfleiderer Engineered Wood. The fall back in
sales following closure of the Rheda-Wiedenbrück plant will be offset by consolidating the Nidda
plant in 2005. Pfleiderer continues to build on positive growth in the Polish market in recent years
where it assumes that sales and earnings will increase. Should basic conditions affecting sales
remain stable, the Business Segment Engineered Wood can expect steady growth. Definite sales
growth is expected in fiscal 2006 when production in the new particleboard plant in Novgorod
in Russia starts up.
The way in which domestic business develops in the Business Segment Infrastructure Technology
will very much depend on the restrictive spending plans of Deutsche Bahn AG. However, Pfleiderer
has been operating a strategy of greater internationalization over the last few years, so that domestic
business will effect results less than in the past. Current projects are expected to lead to
further low growth in sales and earnings.
Bearing this in mind, Pfleiderer’s management expects sales and earnings for fiscal 2005 to improve
slightly overall. Following a marked improvement in the ratio of EBITDA to net corporate
indebtedness, this will increase marginally due to capital expenditure activity in 2005. However,
the ratio is not to exceed a factor of three.
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MANAGEMENT REPORT POST-CLOSURE REPORT/OUTLOOK