Press release 12 June 2017
Ratos presents in connection with its capital markets day today, an updated strategic agenda.
Through increased added value and higher profit levels in the portfolio companies to Ratos in the long term, lay the foundation for a to a greater extent kassaflödesgenererad funding of the Ratos share’s future dividends. Investeringsintervallen for new investments has been updated and the central management costs through internal efficiencies have been lowered. Ratos has chosen six sectors to focus their acquisition and bolagsutvecklingssarbete in the future.
Ratos ceo Magnus Agervald comments:
– Ratos will continue to operate with the same business idea but with a greater focus on the acquisition and bolagsutvecklingsarbete in six sectors. We see that Ratos has a unique position in the market with our flexible investment horizon, strong brand and history and a transparent and value-driven culture. In addition, we have a broad range of skills, large network and long experience in business development, ” says Ratos ceo Magnus Agervald.
– In order to have greater flexibility to make new acquisitions, we are changing our lowest investeringsintervall and lowers the upper range in order to create better risk diversification in the portfolio. We are working closely with our portfolio companies to take action faster but also continue to invest and bet on improvement program in the company which we believe has further potential. Through higher profit levels in our portfolio, and by owning some of the companies a longer period of time is our aim in the long term be able to finance a larger part of the Ratos share dividends by cash flow from the portfolio companies.
– In addition to these initiatives, we have for some time been working to streamline our own organisation and our internal processes which has enabled a reduction in our central costs. Ratos has passed from the operational management costs of 261 Million for 2016 to the present 150 M on a forward-looking basis.
Changing investment criteria
In order to have greater flexibility to make new acquisitions, the previous lowest investeringsintervallet about 250 M in share away. The objective at the new acquisitions, that the company shall have the potential to grow to 0.5 billion in share value at the next five years. The higher investeringsintervallet has been reduced from 5 billion to 2 billion in share to create a better balance and risk diversification in the portfolio.
Long-term ownership provides the opportunity to the financing of the Ratos share dividend
Ratos opportunity for long-term ownership is a strength in many investments, especially partnerskapsaffärer where we develop the company together with the previous owners. To own and develop a profitable company for a long period of time gives an opportunity to obtain current cash flow from these portfolio companies. The distribution of the Ratos share of common stock in the future is to be partially financed by the operating cash flow from the portfolio companies. Ratos will therefore take some companies over a longer period of time as well as work to reduce the level of debt in the companies to allow for the dividends from these.
Focus on accelerated change
We are increasing our impatience with those companies that do not deliver the desired results by taking action faster as well as continue to invest and bet on improvement program in the company which we believe has continued to be good opportunities.
In order to more effectively build skills and internal structural capital has Ratos changed their way of working and split up the investment organization in six sectors: Business Services, Construction, Consumer/Retail/Leisure, Healthcare/life science, Industrials and TMT (Technology, Media, Telecom). In order to effectively support the development in the companies of Ratos, has launched a number of operational areas of focus. Examples of such Purchases, Digitalisation and Sustainability.
Ratos’s central costs
Ratos central organization has during the past year undergone efficiency improvements, which contributed to a smaller organization and thus lower the centre of operational management costs. Ratos operational management costs are deemed in the future to be approximately sek 150 M on an annual basis (compared with 261 Million in 2016), excluding transaction and finance costs.
Presentations to today’s capital markets day are available on www.ratos.se
For further information:
Magnus Agervald, ceo, Ratos, 08-700 17 00
Helene Gustafsson, investor relations and press officer, Ratos, 08-700 17 98
Financial calendar from Ratos:
Interim report January-June 2017 August 17, 2017
Interim report January-september 2017 november 14, 2017
Ratos is an investment company that owns and develops unlisted medium-sized companies in the Nordic region. The goal is to as an active owner contributing to the long-term and sustainable enterprise development in the companies and to implement value-creating transactions. Ratos portfolio consists of 17 nordic medium-sized companies in which the largest sectors in the turnover are Construction, Industry and Consumer goods/Trade. Ratos is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm and has a total of approximately 14 200 employees.
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