Rotterdam, The Netherlands 11 March 2015 - IMCD N.V. ("IMCD" or "Company"), a leading international speciality chemicals-focused distributor, today announces the 2014 full year results.

Highlights
10% growth in revenue to EUR 1,358 million (+11% on a constant currency basis)
Operating EBITA increased by 14% to EUR 110.0 million (+15% on a constant currency basis)
Operating EBITA positively impacted with EUR 2.7 million due to changes in Dutch pension law
Operating EBITA increased by 11% excluding pension adjustment (+13% on a constant currency basis)
Net result EUR 54.3 million before amortisation and non-recurring items (2013: EUR 13.1 million)
Cash conversion ratio improved to 83.9%
Dividend proposal of EUR 0.20 in cash per share

Piet van der Slikke, CEO, commented: "The year 2014 proved to be busy, eventful and rewarding for IMCD. Obviously the listing on Euronext Amsterdam was a significant event for us. Looking at the business, market circumstances were not always easy but we still have been able to achieve strong results. I do believe that our business model provides the right platform to face the challenges of today's business environment. Looking forward I feel confident that we will be able to further strengthen our position as one of the leading distributors of specialty chemicals and food ingredients".

Key figures
EUR million
2014 2013 Change
Revenue 1,358.3 1,233.4 10%
Gross profit 287.6 261.3 10%
Gross profit in % of revenue 21.2% 21.2% 0.0%
Operating EBITA¹ 110.0 96.6 14%
Operating EBITA in % of revenue 8.1% 7.8% 0.3%
Conversion margin2 38.2% 37.0% 1.3%
Net result before amortisation / non recurring items 54.3 13.1 314%
Free cash flow3 94.6 80.5 17%
Cash conversion margin4 83.9% 81.3% 2.6%
Number of full time employees end of period 1,512 1,452 4 %
Proposed cash dividend per share 0.20
¹ Result from operating activities before amortization of intangibles and non-recurring items
2 Operating EBITA in percentage of Gross profit
3
Operating EBITDA plus/less changes in working capital less capital expenditures
4
Free cash flow in percentage of Operating EBITDA

Key figures financial position
Financial results 2014

Revenue
By successfully challenging local and regional market circumstances total revenue increased 10% to EUR 1,358 million compared to EUR 1,233 million in 2013.
Organic growth amounted to 6.3% as a result of a further strengthening of the product portfolio by adding new supplier relations, expanding relations with existing suppliers and an increase of customer penetration by adding
new customers and selling more products to existing customers. Acquisitions completed in 2013 and 2014 had a positive impact on revenue of 4.9%. Exchange rate differences had a negative effect of 1.1%.

Gross profit
Gross profit, defined as revenue less cost of materials and inbound logistics, increased from EUR 261.3 million in 2013 to EUR 287.6 million in 2014, an increase of 10% which is in line with total revenue growth.
The gross profit margin remained stable at 21.2%. Underneath, gross profit margins showed the normal level of differences in margins per region, margins per product and margins per product market combinations.
Differences are mainly caused by local market circumstances, product mix and the impact of newly acquired businesses.

Operating EBITA
Operating EBITA, representing the result from operating activities before amortisation of intangible assets and non-recurring items, increased by 14% to EUR 110.0 million compared to EUR 96.6 million in 2013.
The 14% rise of operating EBITA includes the outcome of the annual pension calculation based on IAS 19 reporting requirements. Because of changes in Dutch pension legislation, past service obligations in The Netherlands were reduced by EUR 2.7 million. This release is partly included in the operational EBITA of the European operations and amounts to EUR 0.5 million. The remaining EUR 2.2 million is included in the operating EBITA of holding companies. Excluding this adjustment the 2014 operating EBITA increased by 11% to EUR 107.3 million.
The growth in operating EBITA was a combination of organic growth, the full year impact of six acquisitions completed in 2013 and two small acquisitions in 2014, combining to a total growth of 15.4% and a negative impact of exchange rate differences of 1.5 %. Excluding the IAS 19 pension adjustments, growth in operating EBITA was 12.6%.
The EBITA margin increased from 7.8% in 2013 to 8.1% in 2014. Excluding the IAS 19 pension adjustment the EBITA margin increased to 7.9%.
Furthermore, in 2014 the conversion margin, operating EBITA as a percentage of gross profit, improved with 1.2% from 37.0% in 2013 to 38.2% in 2014. Excluding the IAS 19 pension adjustment the conversion rate was
37.3%, an indication that further efficiencies in the organisation were achieved.

EUR million
31 December 2014 31 December 2013 Change
Working capital 170.9 150.7 13%
Total equity 530.8 (67.1)
Net debt 257.8 823.5 (69%)
Net debt/EBITDA ratio 2.3 8.3 (6.0)


Net result
Net result for the year increased from a net loss of EUR 5.4 million in 2013 to a net profit of EUR 19.9 million in 2014.
Net result before amortisation and non-recurring items substantially increased from EUR 13.1 million in 2013 to EUR 54.3 million in 2014. The drivers of this increase were the growth of operating EBITA and a substantial reduction of the net finance costs in the second half of 2014 following the capital restructuring after the IPO in June 2014.

Working capital
Working capital is defined as inventories, trade and other receivables minus trade payables and other payables.
At the end of 2014 the absolute amount of working capital was EUR 170.9 million compared to EUR 150.7 million at year end 2013. The increase of EUR 20.2 million is a combination of increased business activity leading to higher working capital levels (+11 EUR million), impact of exchange rate differences on year-end balance sheet positions (+EUR 4.0 million), acquisitions (+EUR 2.2 million) and other working capital movements (+3.0 EUR million).

Cash flow and capital expenditure
Free cash flow increased 17% compared to 2013 from EUR 80.5 million to EUR 94.6 million in 2014. The cash conversion ratio, defined as free cash flow as a percentage of operating EBITA, improved by 2.6% to 83.9% in 2014, with further growth of operating EBITA as main driver.
As a consequence of the asset light business model, capital expenditure is traditionally relatively low compared to the size of the overall operations and amounted to EUR 3.1 million in 2014 compared to 2.5 million in 2013.
Capital expenditure was mainly related to investments in the IT infra-structure and office furniture and equipment.

Net debt
Net debt amounted to EUR 257.8 million at year-end 2014, compared to EUR 823.5 million at year-end 2013.
Prior to the listing on Euronext Amsterdam, IMCD operated with a leverage structure that was different from general market practise for listed companies. With the proceeds of the IPO, IMCD restructured its balance sheet whereby shareholder loans of EUR 314.4 million were added to the company’s additional paid-in capital and existing indebtedness was refinanced with the proceeds of the IPO and newly raised syndicated banking facilities. Healthy cash flow further reduced the net debt position towards year end.

Dividend proposal
For 2014, a dividend of EUR 0.20 in cash per share will be proposed at the Annual General Meeting. Approval at the Annual General Meeting would result in IMCD paying EUR 10.0 million or 25% of the net result realised in the second half of 2014 adjusted for non-cash amortisation charges (net of tax) and non-recurring results in this period related to the unwinding of the pre IPO financing structure, IPO related costs and the recognition of a deferred tax asset.

Outlook
IMCD operates in different, often fragmented market segments in multiple geographic regions, connecting many customers and suppliers across a very diverse product range. In general, results are impacted by macroeconomic conditions and developments in specific industries. Furthermore results can be influenced from period to period by, amongst others, the ability to maintain and expand commercial relationships, the ability to introduce new products and start new customer and supplier relations and the timing, scope and impact of acquisitions.

IMCD’s consistent strategy and resilient business model has led to successful expansion over the years and IMCD remains focused on achieving earnings growth by optimizing its services and further strengthening its market positions. IMCD sees interesting opportunities to increase its global footprint and expand the product portfolio organically and by acquisitions.

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