TRONICS : 2015 HALF YEAR RESULTS

information fournie par Actusnews •15/09/2015 à 16:00

STRONG BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MOMENTUM

Grenoble, France and Dallas, TX, USA – 9 September 2015 – Tronics, a designer and manufacturer of innovative nano and microsystems, is listed on the Paris Alternext market (ISIN code: FR0004175099 - ALTRO).

Tronics' Management Board met on 8 September 2015 and approved the consolidated accounts for the first half of 2015, which were presented to the Supervisory Board on the same day.

The first half of 2015 was marked by the strong business development momentum that generated an engineering activity with a significant increase, growing 17.5% to €3,297K, compared to €2,806K in the previous year. This activity was particularly significant on the Crolles site, with an increase of 37% compared to the same period in 2014. This solid pipeline of new projects will generate manufacturing revenue within the next 12-24 months when they enter into production.

However, manufacturing activity was affected over the period by 1/ a significant customer's production volumes that were much lower than announced at the beginning of the year, 2/ the continued decline of the group's sales to its historical customer, which still generated revenue of €1.5M in the first half of 2014. This decrease of production volumes weighed on the results of the group in the first half of 2015.

In the second half of 2015, the engineering activity will remain robust, and the manufacturing activity should improve starting in September, then trend more favorably in the 4 ^th quarter. In this context, an improvement of the profitability is expected over the second half of the year.

Over the first half of 2015, structural charges and especially staff costs remained stable in order to handle the ramp-up of incoming volumes.

R&D costs were €1.9M, of which 92% were recognized as expenses. All along the half-year period, Tronics' R&D activities have been sustained by the publication of 2 patents, concerning the GYPRO3300 (subject to a partnership with Thales for civil aviation applications) and 3D assembly, respectively, and the filling of 3 new patents in the sector of M&NEMS and atomic clocks.

The gross margin calculated by integrating R&D revenue rose from 71.7% to 72.2%.

A SOUND FINANCIAL STRUCTURE

As of 30 June 2015, Tronics presented a very healthy balance sheet, with shareholders' equity of €16,784 K, available cash of €11,377 K and gross debt of €5,007 K. During the half-year period, financial debt decreased by €681 K, thanks to scheduled repayment on a loan contracted from BPI and installment payments related to leasing contracts.

TRENDS AND OUTLOOK

Tronics continues to pursue its business plan, in accordance with the objectives presented in February, with strong business successes enabling the company to:

• diversify the customer portfolio and add new customers at the international level. Regions outside France thus represented 43% of total revenue in the first half of 2015, versus 21% the year before. In Asia, the attractiveness of the M&NEMS technology for consumer applications makes it possible to target significant development in these applications.
• penetrate new markets and especially in the life sciences sector(BioMEMS), where the group has increased its revenue by a factor of 2.5 in one year. Several other projects are in progress in the medical devices sector.

Deals signed in the mobility, aeronautics, life sciences and watchmaking sectors demonstrate the enlargement of the pipeline of business opportunities in key segments.

Furthermore, the ongoing development partnerships with the Thales group, as well as the STARS project (development of a sensor enabling the measurement of acceleration in harsh environments) in association with Airbus and a leading British group demonstrate the growth momentum underway at Tronics.

This momentum is also illustrated by a strong innovation and a technology roadmap which is progressing in accordance with the objectives that have been set.

In this context, Tronics should show profitable growth from the first half of 2016, and confirms its target to reach revenue of €40M by 2018 with improved profitability.

FIRST HALF FINANCIAL REPORT

In compliance with the Transparency Directive, the company has filed its financial report for the first half of 2015 with the French Financial Markets Authority and has made it available to the public. The report can be consulted at www.tronicsgroup-bourse.com.

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