Full year and fourth quarter 2021 results1
“Closing out a record year with a successful entry into Recycling”
Luxembourg, February 11, 2022 (07:00 CET) - Aperam (referred to as “Aperam” or the “Company”) (Amsterdam, Luxembourg, Paris, Brussels: APAM, NYRS: APEMY), announced today results for the three months and full year ended December 31, 2021.
Highlights
¦ Health and Safety: LTI frequency rate of 2.3x in 2021 compared to 1.5x in 2020
¦ Steel shipments of 1,819 thousand tonnes in 2021, 8.5% increase compared to steel shipments of 1,677 thousand tonnes in 2020
¦ EBITDA of EUR 1,186 million in 2021, including an exceptional gain of EUR 126 million, compared to an EBITDA of EUR 343 million in 2020, including a net exceptional gain of EUR 50 million
¦ EBITDA of EUR 462 million in Q4 2021, including an exceptional gain of EUR 117 million2, compared to EUR 159 million in Q4 2020, including a net exceptional gain of EUR 50 million
¦ Net income of EUR 968 million in 2021, compared to EUR 175 million in 2020
¦ Basic earnings per share of EUR 12.21 in 2021, compared to EUR 2.19 in 2020
¦ Cash flow from operations amounted to EUR 550 million in 2021, compared to EUR 303 million in 2020
¦ Free cash flow before dividend and share buy-back of EUR 367 million in 2021, after EUR (30) million paid for the acquisition of ELG, compared to EUR 195 million in 2020
¦ Net financial debt of EUR 466 million, added from the ELG acquisition as of December 31, 2021, compared to EUR 67 million as of December 31, 2020
Strategic initiatives
Cash deployment
Prospects
¦ Leadership Journey®3 Phase 4: Gains reached EUR 7 million in Q4 2021. Aperam realized cumulative gains of EUR 40 million in the first year of the program. This compares to cumulative target gains of EUR 150 million over the period 2021 to 2023
In coherence to is Financial Policy, Aperam is announcing:
¦ 2022 Dividend: increase from €1.75 per share to €2.00 per share (subject to AGM approval)
¦ 2022 Share Buyback: up to €100 million
¦ Q1 2022 adj. EBITDA is expected at a slightly higher level versus the record Q4 2021 base
¦ We guide for slightly higher Q1 2022 net financial debt
Timoteo Di Maulo, CEO of Aperam, commented:
“In the fourth quarter we realized the fourth record results in a row. This is a reflection of the positive market environment, but also proof of the substantial improvements that we have realized over the past years. We have opened the next chapter in Aperam’s transformation with the acquisition of ELG – a leading recycling company for stainless steel scrap and superalloys. Looking ahead, our long order book signals a good first half. This allows us to invest in realizing Aperam’s growth & improvement strategy to 2025 and sustaining attractive shareholder returns at the same time.”