In the previous financial year 2015/2016 (1 October to 30 September), the Lapp Group was able to increase its performance considerably. The net sales increased to EUR 901.5 million.

"We have increased our customer base worldwide.  We are very proud of this, as it shows just how well-received our products and services are on the market," says Andreas Lapp, Chairman of the Board at Lapp Holding AG. Earnings before taxes increased by 3.9 percent to EUR 42.9 million. The number of full-time positions increased by 140 to 3,440, while a total of 3,530 employees work at Lapp.

Healthy earnings and financial situation
The earnings and financial situation at the Lapp Group was also very healthy in the previous financial year. The equity capital ratio in percent is 55.4 and therefore remains at a high level. Member of the Board for Finance Andreas Hermann said: "The Lapp Group is in very good shape and continues to grow healthily. Thanks to our 2020 Strategy, the course is set for sustainable and stable growth in the coming years as well".

Business development
Despite the difficult situations in some sectors, the Lapp Group was able to hold its own. If the copper prices had not continued to sink considerably across the course of the year, and if the exchange rates had also remained stable, the company would have been able to record a turnover increase of almost eight percent.

The negative influences are mainly a result of the lower copper price, which sank by an annual average of 17 percent from EUR 527/100 kg to EUR 438/100 kg. As the actual price of a cable is calculated daily based on the current price of copper, the turnover automatically decreases when the copper prices sink.

Negative currency developments outside the Eurozone also played a role. These factors combined to lower the net turnover by approximately six percent. This does not accurately reflect the actual performance of the company, however.

The Lapp Group was able to extend their business, for example, with the ready-to-connect system solutions under the ÖLFLEX® CONNECT name.

The organisational requirements for marketing were optimised for the food industry and renewable energy target markets. Lapp is entering another new sector: the cabling of rail vehicles. The Lapp Group has created a complete product portfolio with ÖLFLEX® TRAIN and other brand products for this sector.

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