Symrise continued its dynamic business development in the first half of 2019. According to the company, all segments benefited from higher customer demand and realized a pleasing increase in sales. Across the Group, Symrise increased organic sales in the first half of the year by 6.2%. Accounting for currency translation effects, Group sales increased by an impressive 7.4% to € 1.692 bn (H1 2018: € 1.576 bn).
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounted to € 342 m and therefore was up 7.7% over the previous year’s level (H1 2018: € 317 m). Adjusted for the one-time effects related to the planned acquisition of ADF/IDF, EBITDA(N) amounted to € 351 m, exceeding the previous year’s figure by € 34 m.
The profitability of the Group remained at a high level with an EBITDA(N) margin of 20.8% (H1 2018: 20.1%). As a result of the new IFRS 16 standard, EBITDA(N) increased by € 9.8 m in the first half of 2019. The normalized net income for the period of € 153 m exceeded the previous year’s level by 7.8% (H1 2018: € 142 m).