By the end of the acceptance period on 31 October 2013, a total of 1 366 696 Jetter shares were tendered. Together with the shares already held by Bucher and those acquired in parallel trading, this amounts to 75.17% of the share capital of Jetter AG.
In the first nine months of the current business year, Bucher Industries increased its order intake to CHF 1 961 million, a rise of 11%. All the divisions contributed to this positive development. Sales reached CHF 2 001 million, 4% higher than for the same period last year. For the 2013 business year as a whole, the Group is expecting a slight increase in sales and a further improvement in operating profit and profit for the year.
Bucher Industries plans to present Jetter AG shareholders with a voluntary public tender offer at a price of 7.00 euros per share. Bucher Industries has held a stake in Jetter AG since 2005, recently amounting to nearly 30% of the equity. In the last two years, Jetter has generated around 50% of its sales with Bucher Group companies. Bucher Industries is planning to reinforce Jetter’s know-how in the area of automation systems. The aim of the tender offer is to purchase all the shares in Jetter AG. Jetter’s Supervisory and Executive Boards support the takeover offer.
In a generally friendly market environment, Bucher Industries increased order intake by 14% to CHF 1 227 million in the first half of 2013. Sales were up 2% to CHF 1 410 million, while operating profit improved by 5% to CHF 141 million. Group profit for the period amounted to CHF 95 million, surpassing the figure for the same period of last year by 4%. For 2013 as a whole, the Group expects a modest increase in sales and a further improvement in operating profit and profit for the year.
On the basis of solid demand in all divisions, Bucher Industries increased order intake by 15% to CHF 672 million in the first quarter of 2013. Sales reached CHF 658 million, a 4% decline compared with the high level recorded for the same period of the previous year. The acquisition effect was just under 3%.
The shareholders attending today’s annual general meeting of Bucher Industries AG approved all the board of directors’ proposals. In addition to the regular agenda items, the shareholders approved the re-election of Rolf Broglie and Anita Hauser to the board.
Bucher Hydraulics, a division of Bucher Industries, is creating a new production and engineering base in Brazil by acquiring Eco Sistemas near Porto Alegre. Eco Sistemas is the ideal partner to establish the new hub of Bucher Hydraulics in South America.