Hochtief EBITA down 6%, cash balance holding up in 1H2010

Germany's Hochtief revenue up 3.8% - consolidated financial highlights for the six months ended 30-Jun-2010:

• Sales revenue: EUR9,525 million, +3.8% year-on-year;
• Costs:
  • Materials: EUR6,346 million, -4.0%;
  • Labour: EUR1,950 million, +18.5%;
• EBITA: EUR396.2 million, +6.0%;
  • Concessions: EUR37.0 million, -6.1%;
• Profit before tax: EUR301.6 million, +6.0%;
• Net profit: EUR88.1 million, +2.1%;
• Operating cash flow: EUR615.3 million, +95.1%;
• Cash and cash equivalents: EUR2,066 million, +30.1%;
• Order backlog: EUR42,519 million, +28.3%;
• Net assets: EUR6,736 million, +14.8%;
  • Concessions: EUR1,229 million, -2.7%. [more]

Hochtief: "We reported extraordinary income for Athens Airport in 2009. Because of this once-only item, the HOCHTIEF Concessions division expects profit before taxes for 2010 to be significantly below its high prior-year level. However, we expect to fall only slightly short of the prior-year earnings figure adjusted for the positive nonrecurring item at Athens Airport in 2009. The decrease results from the special tax imposed by Greece in the second quarter, the overall recessionary situation in Greece, and likely further remedial measures by the Greek government whose impact is currently hard to predict. These factors will be partly compensated for by efficiency gains in our operating business," Company statement. Source: Hochtief, 16-Aug-2010.