In 2016, Softing 's revenue amounted to EUR 80.4 million, which is just under the previous year's figure of EUR 82.3 million. EBIT amounted to EUR 7.2 million, which corresponds to an increase of almost 30%. This includes a one-off effect from the reduction in the variable purchase price for the US subsidiary Oldi, which had missed its sales target. The positive one-off effect of around EUR 4 million for Softing and the associated weaker operating income are linked. If Oldi had achieved sales as planned, these sales would have resulted in a share of earnings of around 2.5 million dollars.

Adjusted for capitalized development costs, depreciation and amortization and the effects of the purchase price allocation, EBIT amounted to EUR 6.7 million last year. This is 6% below the previous year's figure of EUR 7.1 million - "this demonstrates Softing's earning power, despite the weakness in North America, a core market for Softing," says Dr. Wolfgang Trier.

Softing's key figures in a year-on-year comparison

© Softing

In the 'Industrial' segment, which also includes figures from IT Networks, the company achieved sales of EUR 57.6 million (2015: EUR 58.7 million). Operating EBIT climbed from EUR 4.9 million to EUR 6 million. "The markets in this segment in Europe and Asia developed extremely well, despite the weaknesses in the US market," summarizes Trier.

Sales in the 'Automotive' segment fell slightly from EUR 23.6 million to EUR 22.8 million. Operating EBIT decreased by EUR 1.5 million to EUR 0.7 million. This was due to the sale of a high-margin product for a car manufacturer in the previous year and increased costs from product development. "Despite a successful project in the Heavy Duty Diesel segment, the additional costs could not be fully compensated in one step," says Trier.

Outlook for 2017

In the current 2017 financial year, Stofting is aiming for sales of over EUR 80 million and EBIT of around EUR 6 million.

In the Industrial segment, the company anticipates an initial recovery in process technology: In the US, in addition to maintenance drilling, the tendering of new pipelines will result in infrastructure projects that will lead to growth for Softing and its US subsidiary Oldi in the second half of the year, as in 2018. There are also major orders from the manufacturing industry, which Softing will not be able to fulfill until the end of the second quarter due to component availability. In Summer, the company expects significant growth in North America and continued stable business in Europe.

In the Automotive segment, Softing is currently facing the challenge of successfully completing two extensive core developments and at the same time implementing key customer projects on schedule. In addition, a broad customer base needs to be developed with the Softing Diagnostics App. Softing sees a significant increase in demand here.