CORREA GROUP CLOSES 2022 WITH RECORD LEVEL SALES AND PROFITS

The portfolio accumulated throughout 2021 and the strong start to 2022 has enabled the Correa Group -leading corporate group in large-scale milling solutions at global level- to largely surpass the scenario generated at macro level, closing out 2022 with a consolidated Group turnover of 98.2 million euros, which is 28% up on the prior year.

This volume increase has enabled the Group to offset in its income statement the impact of the existing inflationary tensions, the global supply problems, the climb in energy prices, particularly gas, and the pressures of an increasingly restrictive monetary policy. The Correa Group has managed to exceed last year's profitability levels, recording an EBITDA for the Group of 10.9 million euros, bringing the rate of EBITDA over income to 11%, which is above the machine tool sector average.

Pre-tax profits have come to 10.3 million euros, 47% above the profit recorded in the same period last year. In percentage terms, return on revenue is 10.5%, which places the Correa Group in a benchmark position in the large milling machine manufacturing sector, particularly notable in the current climate.

Additionally, the year closes with record amounts of incoming orders, amounting to 93.9 million euros, which is 14% above what the Group recorded last year. This order portfolio figure means that the Group is almost at full production for 2023 and even has orders for 2024 already.

The Group's business continues to generate a solid operating cash flow which is enabling it to continue with its shareholder remuneration commitment and to pursue its investment plans to improve the production capacities of the Group, thus sustaining its solid, profitable and consistent growth strategy. The proposal of the Board of Directors, pending approval by the General Shareholders’ Meeting, is to pay shareholders a dividend of 0.23 euros per share in 2023 against 2022 profits, which is almost 15% more than in the prior year.

These results have been achieved thanks to a strict operating strategy, the mainstay of which is profitability based on cost management and control in all production processes. 2022 was a year of challenges for the Correa Group, having to prepare in record time for a very significant increase in volume in an extremely difficult operating context, marked by rising prices of critical materials and, above all, by continuous delays in delivery terms.

In commercial terms, the importance of the company's export activity is still key, since it represents over 92% of its turnover, with significant geographical diversification. Sectorial diversification is also gaining special relevance at this time, and the Group will largely focus its efforts on three sectors in which activity has begun to climb: Defence, for obvious reasons; the Renewable Energies and Nuclear sector, since seeking alternatives to fossil fuels is a global priority at present; and Aeronautics, which, although marginally less than the two aforementioned sectors, is also seeing an upturn after years of desolation.

“Having celebrated our 75th anniversary as a company in 2022, we looked back over our history with great pride about what we have achieved and what we, and those who helped get us here, have learned, but most of all, pride that we can face the future with hope, despite experiencing times of great instability and uncertainty. This hope for the future is possible thanks to our excellent human team that drives us each day towards growth and profitability, enabling us to be among the benchmark manufacturers of our sector.” concludes Correa Group CEO, Carmen Pinto.

The Correa Group is a global benchmark in the manufacturing of large-scale milling machines and industrial components for the machine tool sector. Nicolás Correa S.A., founded in 1947, is the Correa Group’s parent company. Thousands of customers world-wide trust the Correa milling machine product range manufactured in their production plants in Burgos for their machining needs. Currently, the Correa Group exports approximately 92% of its production to over 20 countries. This is done through a large network of commercial distributors and subsidiaries that maintain direct and personalised contact with customers. Nicolás Correa, S.A. has been listed on the Madrid stock exchange since 1989. The Correa Group has four industrial subsidiaries linked to the machine tool sector. Under the umbrella of the parent company, they form an integrated and synergistic network.