Leifheit AG: Final figures for financial year 2022

• Preliminary figures for 2022 confirmed, with Group turnover amounting to EUR 251.5 million and Group EBIT at EUR 2.8 million
• Positive free cash flow amounts to EUR 8.8 million
• Jump in demand for energy-saving laundry dryers
• Dividend of EUR 0.70 per no-par-value bearer share proposed
• Forecast for 2023: Group turnover down slightly year on year, EBIT in lower single-digit million-euro range

Nassau, 29 March 2023 – Leifheit AG (ISIN DE0006464506), one of the leading brand suppliers of household products in Europe, today released its final figures for financial year 2022, which fell within the most recently forecast ranges.

The business results for 2022 reflect the exceptionally challenging market environment confronting the Leifheit Group. Especially in the domestic German market, dramatic price increases, along with general uncertainty, led to significant consumer restraint. Group earnings were impacted by soaring material and energy prices, which the Board of Management sought to counter through strict cost and resource management as well as by increasing sales prices. However, this was only partially able to compensate for the massive cost increases in procurement.

In the past financial year the Leifheit Group generated turnover of EUR 251.5 million, corresponding to a decrease of 12.8% compared with the record turnover of EUR 288.3 million in 2021. In view of the sharp rise in inflation, the consumer climate in the core markets of the Leifheit Group dampened noticeably in financial year 2022. However, Group turnover remained at a high level in 2022 and was up significantly, by roughly 7%, on the same period in the pre-coronavirus year of 2019.

The Leifheit Group’s earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) amounted to EUR 2.8 million, and therefore came within the recently forecasted single-digit million range. The decrease in earnings compared to the previous year (2021: EUR 20.1 million) was mainly due to the lack of contribution margins from the decline in turnover as well as the drastic rise in material and energy prices. After taxes, the Leifheit Group reported a positive net result for the period of EUR 1.2 million (2021: EUR 14.2 million). Free cash flow amounted to EUR 8.8 million in financial year 2022 and was therefore only slightly below the previous year’s EUR 9.6 million; this development was mainly due to an improvement in working capital.

The Leifheit Group’s capital structure remained solid in financial year 2022. As at 31 December 2022, liquidity amounted to EUR 36.3 million (2021: EUR 38.1 million). Equity rose marginally to EUR 112.5 million as at 31 December 2022 (2021: EUR 111.3 million). Because total assets decreased significantly at the same time, the equity ratio increased by 5.4 percentage points to 52.0% as at the reporting date (2021: 46.6%). As in previous years, the Leifheit Group had no liabilities to banks at the end of financial year 2022.

Dividend proposal

The Board of Management and the Supervisory Board will propose a dividend for financial year 2022 of EUR 0.70 per dividend-entitled no-par-value bearer share to the Annual General Meeting on 7 June 2023, which this year will be held in person again. Given the company’s sound liquidity base and the fact that it generated free cash flow of EUR 8.8 million in 2022, Leifheit AG intends to maintain its shareholder-oriented dividend policy despite the challenging economic conditions. Based on the share price at the end of 2022, this corresponds to a dividend yield of 5.2%.

Turnover by region

After recording significant double-digit growth in the domestic German market in the past two years, the Leifheit Group’s turnover declined by 21.8%, from EUR 126.4 million in the previous year to EUR 98.8 million in the reporting period. In the Central Europe sales region, turnover was down year on year by 4.5% overall to EUR 111.2 million (2021: EUR 116.4 million) despite the successful expansion of the distribution network – in France and Italy for instance – as well as significant growth in Spain and the Netherlands. Turnover in the Eastern Europe sales region stood at EUR 34.2 million in the reporting period, compared to EUR 37.9 million in the previous year. In the markets outside Europe, turnover amounted to EUR 7.3 million in 2022, which was only slightly below the previous year (2021: EUR 7.6 million). 

Turnover by segment

In the Household segment with the Leifheit brand, by far the largest segment, turnover decreased from EUR 230.8 million in the previous year to EUR 204.2 million in 2022. In the course of its advertising activities, Leifheit shifted the focus to the sustainability and energy efficiency of its laundry care products with the “Electricity Savers” campaign and recorded an increase in demand for energy-saving laundry dryers such as the Leifheit Pegasus laundry drying rack and the Linomatic rotary dryer. By contrast, turnover in the cleaning and kitchen product categories fell short of the strong figures recorded in the previous year.

In the significantly smaller Wellbeing segment with the Soehnle brand, turnover amounted to EUR 16.1 million (2021: EUR 25.5 million). In the Private Label segment with the French subsidiaries Birambeau and Herby, turnover fell only slightly to EUR 31.2 million in 2022, following EUR 32.0 million in the previous year. Even though the turnover figures in the Private Label segment fell slightly short of the previous year’s level overall, the demand trend for the Herby laundry care products was positive, with double-digit turnover growth.

Outlook for 2023

A cautious improvement in consumer sentiment set in at the start of 2023. However, the consumer climate remains at a low level despite the slight improvement. Uncertainty is still high in view of the multiple crises. At the same time, high procurement costs and energy prices continue to put pressure on the Group’s earnings performance. The environment in which the Leifheit Group will operate in 2023 will therefore continue to be very challenging.

In light of this, the Leifheit Group forecasts a slight year-on-year decline in Group turnover for the financial year 2023. The company expects noticeable declines in the Household and Wellbeing segments, while the Private Label segment is expected to experience slight growth. The Group’s earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) is expected to be positive, in the lower single-digit million-euro range. On that basis, free cash flow in financial year 2023 is also likely to be in the lower single-digit million-euro range.

The Board of Management of Leifheit AG will continue taking steps and adapting processes and structures in order to address high procurement costs and the tense economic environment, as well as consumer behaviour that is heavily influenced by inflation concerns and restraint – all with the goal of leading the Leifheit Group back to a path of lasting success.

The Leifheit Group’s full annual report 2022 is available for download at https://www.leifheit-group.com/en/investor-relations/reports-and-presentations/.

About Leifheit

Leifheit AG, founded in 1959, is one of the leading European brand suppliers of household items. The Leifheit Group divides its operating business into the Household, Wellbeing and Private Label segments. Leifheit and Soehnle products – two of Germany’s best-known household brands – are known for high quality and great utility for consumers. Its French subsidiaries Birambeau and Herby are active in the service-oriented Private Label segment with a selected product range. In each segment, the company focuses on its core product categories of cleaning, laundry care, kitchen goods and wellbeing. The Leifheit Group employs some 1,100 people. More information on Leifheit is available online at www.leifheit-group.com, www.leifheit.de and www.soehnle.de.