In This Article:
SYENSQO THIRD QUARTER 2024 RESULTS
Brussels, Belgium – November 05, 2024 - 07:00 CET
RETURN TO VOLUME GROWTH WITH 5% YEAR-ON-YEAR INCREASE AND ROBUST MARGINS IN A CHALLENGING MARKET ENVIRONMENT
| Underlying (€ million) | Q3 2024 | Q3 2023 | Q2 2024 | YoY change | YoY organic | QoQ change |
| 9M 2024 | 9M 2023 | YoY change | YoY organic |
| Net sales | 1,633 | 1,629 | 1,708 | 0.2% | 1.6% | -4.4% |
| 4,965 | 5,257 | -5.6% | -4.1% |
| Gross profit | 572 | 592 | 582 | -3.4% | - | -1.7% |
| 1,737 | 1,890 | -8.1% | - |
| Gross profit margin | 35.0% | 36.4% | 34.1% | -130 bps | - | 100 bps |
| 35.0% | 35.9% | -100 bps | - |
| EBITDA | 374 | 418 | 378 | -10.5% | -7.9% | -0.9% |
| 1,114 | 1,324 | -15.8% | -13.3% |
| EBITDA margin | 22.9% | 25.7% | 22.1% | -280 bps | - | 80 bps |
| 22.4% | 25.2% | -270 bps | - |
| Operating cash flow | 210 | 423 | 43 | -50.4% | - | 388% |
| 497 | 1,080 | -54.0% | - |
| Op. cash flow excl. €167mn payment to NJDEP | n.a. | 423 | 210 | n.a. | - | n.a. |
| 664 | 1,080 | -38.6% | - |
| Free cash flow | 27 | 216 | -120 | -87.5% | - | -123% |
| 65 | 483 | -86.5% | - |
| FCF excl. €167mn payment to NJDEP | n.a. | 216 | 47 | n.a. | - | n.a. |
| 232 | 483 | -52.0% | - |
| Cash conversion (LTM) | 69% | n.a. | 77% | n.a. | - | -800 bps |
| n.a. | n.a. | n.a. | - |
| Cash conv. (LTM) excl. €167mn payment to NJDEP | 81% | n.a. | 88% | n.a. | - | -700 bps |
| n.a. | n.a. | n.a. | - |
| ROCE (LTM) | 8.1% | n.a. | 8.8% | n.a. | - | -70 bps |
| n.a. | n.a. | n.a. | - |
Highlights
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Net sales of €1.6 billion increased by 2% year-on-year organically, driven by higher volumes in both the Materials and Consumer & Resources segments. Strong performance in Composite Materials and Novecare with 14% and 10% year-on-year net sales growth respectively;
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Underlying EBITDA of €374 million, approximately flat sequentially, included net pricing impact of €-12 million;
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EBITDA margin of 22.9% increased by approximately 80 basis points sequentially with improvements in both the Materials and Consumer & Resources segments;
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Underlying net profit of €162 million;
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Operating cash flow of €210 million; Free cash flow of €27 million, with cash conversion of 81%1;
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Balance sheet: net debt of €1.9 billion, approximately flat sequentially; leverage ratio of 1.3x;
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Completed €75 million Long Term Incentive Plan share repurchase at average price of €75.64;
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New €300 million share buyback program announced at the end of Q3;
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Full year outlook ranges updated, including the impact of strike at Boeing.
Dr. Ilham Kadri, CEO
“In the context of ongoing macroeconomic and demand uncertainty, I am pleased that we returned to year-on-year volume and top line growth in Q3, led by double digit increases in Composite Materials and Novecare. We also delivered another quarter of robust margin performance across most of our business units as well as sequential improvements in both segments, led by Specialty Polymers, Technology Solutions and Novecare.