Gerresheimer AG grew strongly in the fourth quarter of 2020 and reported the best quarter in the company's history to date despite the negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to Gerresheimer CEO Dietmar Siemssen, the fourth quarter was very strong and the best quarter in the company's history to date. Despite the negative effects of the Covid pandemic, particularly in the cosmetics business the targets for 2020 achieved.
In the fourth quarter of 2020, the first significant sales revenue was generated from the manufacture and delivery of Injection vials for Covid-19 vaccines were recorded. The company has significantly expanded its production capacity for the manufacture of injection vials.
„The successful acceleration of growth in large parts of our core business shows the effectiveness of our measures and gives us great confidence in our business development over the coming years. We continued to focus on the implementation of our strategy process in 2020. We are turning our Gerresheimer into a growth company as an innovation leader and solution provider.“ Dietmar Siemssen, CEO of Gerresheimer AG
The aim is to accelerate sales growth in 2021 and achieve high single-digit growth rates in the medium term. „We want our shareholders to participate in our success. The Executive Board and Supervisory Board are proposing a dividend of EUR 1.25 per share for the 2020 financial year, the tenth consecutive increase.“
Gerresheimer with single-digit sales growth
In the fourth quarter, the Gerresheimer AG achieved sales of 403 million euros. This corresponds to organic growth of 7.3 per cent in the core business. This consists of the Plastics & Devices and Primary Packaging Glass divisions.
The Gerresheimer Group generated revenue of EUR 1,419m in the financial year 2020. Organic growth in the core business totalled 3.8%.
The Plastics and Devices division grew organically by six per cent in the fourth quarter of 2020. The syringe business and the medical plastic systems business in particular contributed to this with double-digit growth rates in each case. In addition to the strong syringe business, sales of inhalers, insulin pens and plastic packaging also contributed to the positive development in the 2020 financial year with organic growth of 4.7 per cent.
The Primary Packaging Glass Division recorded an organic growth rate of 9.1 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2020. This good figure was accelerated by the first significant sales of innovative products such as Gx Elite Glass and ready-to-fill vials.
Looking at the 2020 financial year as a whole, demand for high-quality perfume flacons was significantly lower than in the previous year due to Covid-19. Nevertheless, the Primary Packaging Glass Division was able to achieve an overall Organic sales growth of 2.7 per cent be achieved. Excluding the cosmetics business, organic sales growth of 6.7 per cent is calculated for this division in the 2020 financial year.
Source: Gerresheimer AG
