DGAP-Adhoc: Roth & Rau AG: Ongoing sector weakness leads to lower new orders in third quarter / Forecast adjusted to market developments

Roth & Rau AG / Forecast

04.11.2009 

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Roth & Rau AG: 
- Ongoing sector weakness leads to lower new orders in third quarter 
- Forecast adjusted to market developments 

Hohenstein-Ernstthal, 4 November 2009 - Worldwide photovoltaics markets
continued to develop weakly in the third quarter of 2009. The further fall
in prices for modules and cells together with ongoing difficult financing
conditions in the project business have reduced manufacturers' willingness
to invest, thus also impacting negatively on the order situation at the
Roth & Rau Group. The slight recovery expected in the second half of the
year has not yet materialised. This is reflected in the Group's new order
figures for the period from June to September, which at EUR 18,291k fell
short of expectations (2008: EUR 40,493k). Orders on hand amounted to EUR
134,571k as of 30 September 2009 (2008: EUR 238,225k). Moreover, the Group
also had letters of intent amounting to EUR 195.0 million.

Based on the volume of orders on hand and including the sales of EUR
159,514k generated in the first nine months of 2009 (2008: EUR 197,479k),
the Management Board today adjusted its forecast and now expects to achieve
consolidated sales of around EUR 200 million in the 2009 financial year as
a whole. The Group's earnings position in the first nine months of the
current financial year was affected on the one hand by the lower volume of
sales and on the other by one-off expenses incurred on strategic
investments and acquisitions. Accordingly, Roth & Rau generated earnings
before interest and taxes (EBIT) of EUR 13,128k, equivalent to an EBIT
margin of 8.2 % (2008: EUR 20,869k / 10.6 %). For the year as a whole, the
Management Board also expects to achieve an EBIT margin of around 8.0 %.

Definitive figures on the Group's business performance in the first nine
months and third quarter of 2009 will be published in the quarterly report
on 13 November 2009.

Contact:
Haubrok Investor Relations GmbH
Simone Gorny
Tel.: +49 (0) 211/30126-130
E-mail: s.gorny@haubrok.de

Haubrok Investor Relations GmbH
Simone Gorny
Tel.: +49 (0) 211/30126-130
E-mail: s.gorny@haubrok.de


04.11.2009  |[![CDATA[|[a href="http://www.dgap.de"|]Financial News transmitted by DGAP|[/a|]]]|]

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Language:     English
Company:      Roth & Rau AG
              An der Baumschule 6-8
              09337 Hohenstein-Ernstthal
              Deutschland
Phone:        03723 6685-0
Fax:          03723 6685-100
E-mail:       info@roth-rau.de
Internet:     www.roth-rau.de
ISIN:         DE000A0JCZ51
WKN:          A0JCZ5
Indices:      TecDAX
Listed:       Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr
              in Berlin, München, Düsseldorf, Stuttgart
 
End of News                                     DGAP News-Service
 
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