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Generali Holding Vienna AG

euro adhoc: Generali Holding Vienna AG
Annual Reports
Generali Vienna Group: Sharp increase in profit (E)

  Disclosure announcement transmitted by euro adhoc.
  The issuer is responsible for the content of this announcement.
Consolidated financial statements of the Generali Vienna Group show
increase in profit from ordinary activities from EUR6mn to EUR42mn -
On the way to becoming Austria's market leader - First positive net
earnings for the year posted in Central and Eastern Europe.
The Consolidated Financial Statements of the Generali Vienna Group
for 2003, presented today, show marked year-on-year improvements in
its key figures:
- Net profit for the year posted by this fully integrated financial
services group - which includes numerous insurance companies, pension
funds and real-estate, service and investment companies in Austria
and seven countries in Central and Eastern Europe as well as the
Generali Bank - grew by 46 per cent to EUR 25.3 million. 
- Profit from ordinary activities increased from EUR 5.5 million to
EUR 42.1 million.
- Premium income grew by 1.0 per cent to EUR 2.6 billion. Premium
income from primary insurance business (without reinsurance) advanced
by 4.0 per cent to EUR 2.5 billion. The relative contribution to the
group's aggregate premium income from primary insurance business made
by its insurance subsidiaries in Central and Eastern Europe increased
to nearly 25 per cent.
As CEO Dietrich Karner emphasized in his Letter to Shareholders,
commenting on that development, "Our clear strategy - a strategy that
is being implemented with the help of concrete action and the strict
monitoring of results - is having a visible impact. We have been able
to reinforce our group's already strong focus on profitability."
On the way to becoming Austria's market leader
The Austrian insurance subsidiaries' results improvement was
particularly striking. Generali Versicherung, Interunfall and
Europäische Reiseversicherung posted total profit of EUR 15.3
million, having still recorded a loss of EUR 124 million in 2002. 
The group is one of Austria's three biggest insurance enterprises
with a market share of 14.5 per cent, and Generali Versicherung will
become Austria's biggest insurer after its merger with Interunfall in
2004.
No. 2 in Hungary with a major market share
Most of the Hungarian insurance companies' net profit for the year
which totalled EUR 6.1 million was generated by Generali-Providencia,
but travel insurer EUB also contributed to total profits. The
Generali Group ranks second in Hungary with a market share of 17.6
per cent.
The Generali subsidiary in the Czech Republic was also profitable,
already posting net profit for 2003 of EUR 2.4 million. Net profit
for the year returned by the group's Romanian subsidiary was above
plan at EUR 0.3 million. The Generali insurance companies in Poland
were able to post a net profit for the year - EUR 3.1 million—for the
very first time.
The group subsidiaries that are still under development also did
well. The group's net loss for the year in Slovakia was nearly just
half as big as in 2002 at EUR 1.4 million. Generali's Slovenian
subsidiary developed better than expected, posting a net loss for the
year of EUR 2.4 million; it still plans to reach breakeven point in
2006. Having only become operative at the end of 2002, Generali in
Croatia returned a substantially better-than-planned net loss for the
year of EUR 1.0 million.
Market capitalization increases by nearly EUR 500 million
Generali Holding Vienna AG has been listed on the Vienna stock
exchange since 1886. The company will be distributing a total of EUR
16.0 million from its profit in 2003, exceeding the previous year's
distribution by 9.9 per cent. The AGM in Vienna on 26 May 2004 will
therefore be asked to approve the distribution of 25 cents per no-par
share (dividend of 20 cents and bonus of 5 cents). The Generali
Holding Vienna share gained 41 per cent in price during 2003, giving
the company market capitalization of EUR 1,665.7 million at year-end
2003. That was EUR 482.1 million more than the comparable figure for
year-end 2002. Generali Holding Vienna AG advanced one place to fifth
in the market capitalization rankings of the companies traded in
Vienna's Prime Market segment.
AGM: Approved capital of EUR 30 million
The agenda for the AGM will also include authorization of the
Managing Board to carry out capital increases totalling up to EUR 30
million (nominal) over the next five years. Given the stock's current
price of EUR 27.75 per no-par share (27 April 2004), that would make
it possible to add up to EUR 832.5 million to the company's own
funds. 
In the words of CEO Dietrich Karner, "We expect the process of
consolidation in the insurance industry - especially in the Central
and Eastern European region - to continue.  We want to be able to
play an important role in this process."
end of announcement        euro adhoc 28.04.2004

Further inquiry note:

Generali Holding Vienna AG
Josef Hlinka
Tel.: (++43-1) 534 01-1375
Fax: (++43-1) 534 01-1593
mailto:josef.hlinka@generali.at
http://holding.generali.at

Branche: Insurance
ISIN: AT0000661350
WKN: 066135
Index: ATX, ATX Prime, WBI
Börsen: Wiener Börse AG / official dealing
Berliner Wertpapierbörse / free trade
Bayerische Börse / free trade
Hamburger Wertpapierbörse / free trade
Baden-Württembergische Wertpapierbörse / free trade
Frankfurter Wertpapierbörse / free trade

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