Orkla fourth quarter 2007

4th quarter 2007 - Key figures

Earnings per share for 2007 were NOK 8.2 compared to NOK 10.9 (NOK 6.9 adjusted for one-time effects related to the sale of Orkla Media) in 2006. The Board of Directors proposes to increase the dividend by 12.5 % to NOK 2.25.
Group pre-tax profit in the fourth quarter ended at NOK 1,267 million (NOK 2,965 million)¹. Realised portfolio gains were just under NOK 1.4 billion lower than in the fourth quarter of last year. For the full year, portfolio gains in 2007 were higher than in 2006.
Orkla’s fourth-quarter operating profit before amortisation, restructuring and significant impairments (EBITA), amounted to NOK 1,219 million (NOK 1,652 million)¹.
Orkla Materials reported a NOK 264 million decline in profit compared with the fourth quarter of 2007. The expiry of power contracts at Borregaard and a significantly lower contribution to profit from power trading at Elkem represented a difference in profit totalling around NOK -170 million. A weak USD, the start-up of the anode factory in Mosjøen and higher raw material costs lowered profit for Elkem Aluminium by over NOK 100 million compared with last year.
Orkla Branded Consumer Goods’ profit performance was largely as expected and is still being negatively affected by the higher prices of factor inputs and challenging markets for some of the units in Orkla Foods. The improvement programme at Orkla Foods is being implemented on an ongoing basis, and the year-on-year difference in profit was relatively smaller in the fourth quarter than in the two preceding quarters.
In Orkla Aluminium Solutions, the integration of Alcoa’s extrusion operations is on track. Start-up and integration costs on the order of NOK 60 million were charged against fourth-quarter EBITA. A provision of NOK 309 million was also made under ‘Restructuring and significant impairments’ for restructuring production in the new Sapa AB. Heat Transfer and Building System continued to report profit growth.
The contribution to profit from Orkla Associates was significantly higher in 2007 than in 2006. REC reported fourth-quarter EBITDA of NOK 848 million (NOK 676 million)¹ , while Jotun continued to report good sales growth towards the end of the year.
The return on the Share Portfolio in 2007 was 16.2 %, compared with 11.7 % for the Morgan Stanley Nordic Index and 11.5 % for the Oslo Stock Exchange Benchmark Index.

_{¹The figures in brackets refer to the corresponding period of the previous year
²Excluding acquisitions, divestments and currency translation effects}

Orkla fourth quarter 2007

The fourth quarter in brief

Documents

Operating revenues

Operating profit*