Ackermans & Van Haaren NV (ACKB) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Hello. I'm Jan Suykens. Ackermans & Van Haaren realized a book of consolidated result of 2019 of EUR 395 million, partially thanks to the capital gain realized on the sale of the French senior care activities. Due to the sale, our net cash amounts now to almost EUR 270 million. Our consolidated net equity has again increased with more than 11% to EUR 3.5 billion. The core strategic segments resisted work in a complex geopolitical environment as well as volatile financial markets. DEME kept its turnover stable at EUR 2.6 billion, and renewed its order book at a high level of almost EUR 3.8 billion, whilst continuing to invest in expanding its fleet. The DP3 vessel, Orion, with a crane capacity of 5,000 tonnes is due to come in service in the coming months. Delen Private Bank and Bank Van Breda continue to generate net inflows, and jointly managed almost EUR 52 billion of assets under management. The contribution from the Real Estate & Senior Care segment remains stable at a high EUR 50 million. SIPEF suffered from cyclical low palm oil prices and difficult climate conditions, especially in Papua New Guinea. But we remain confident that growing our acreage of sustainable palm oil is the right strategy for SIPEF. AvH wants to be a partner for sustainable growth. We see ourselves as entrepreneurs, building and developing companies and thereby realizing growing recurring results. As investors, we are also very much focused on sustainable businesses. For example, 50% of our Marine Engineering business is centered around the construction of offshore wind installations, developing renewable energy and combating climate change. All the funds of Delen Private Bank apply a common responsible investment framework. In the real estate area, we have realized a 50,000-square meter office project at the Tour & Taxis, Gare Maritime, which is fully constructed in wood and based on solar and geothermic energy sources. 100% of SIPEF's palm oil is sustainable, traceable and RSPO certified. And I also refer to our recent participations in Bioelectric, Biotalys and Medikabazaar. In 2019, we have streamlined our approach towards environmental, societal and governance aspects. As responsible owner and investor, we will focus our efforts on contributing to the SDG goals. I'm proud of what we have achieved and confident that we, with our 22,000 colleagues all around the world, will continue generating shareholders' value in 2020.