Looking at the markets: Bossard, Norma Group, SFS

It's time for our second issue of the column "Looking at the markets", devoted to analysing the performances of three stock companies which are prominent in their field with current information on their business activities.

This time we chose to concentrate on fasteners, as an inportant date with this industry just came to an end. You can find an article with impressions about Fastener Fair Stuttgart, held on March 28 - 30, at this link >

We invite you to read also the final part of the article called "Latest trends" which considers newly published market surveys and other studies concerning directly or indirectly the mentioned industries, that might constitute an additional source of valuable information.

This issue is focusing on the following companies: Bossard, CH: Fasteners and fastening systems
Norma Group, Germany: Joining technology
SFS, CH: Fasteners and fastening systems
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Bossard

Bossard Group, Zug/Switzerland (08/03/2017): The supplier of industrial fastener and assembly technology with more than 2,100 employees in over 75 worldwide, reported that sales, EBIT, and net income reached record highs in 2016: Sales grew by 5.9% to CHF 695.0 million, EBIT increased by 11.6% to CHF 78.5 million and net income rose 14.6% to CHF 62.4 million.
In Europe, sales rose by 4.7%to CHF 401.6 million (+3.6% in local currency). The sales dynamics intensified in the second half of the year.
In America, Bossard again made gains through organic growth and the acquisition of Arnold Industries as per September 2016. Sales increased by 12% to CHF 186.1 million (+9.3% in local currency). Growth intensified even more toward the end of the year. Q4 sales rose by 15.3%, excluding the Arnold acquisition. This growth is reflected in the intensified cooperation with the leading US electric vehicle manufacturer whose production volumes exhibited a marked increase in the second half of the year. Bossard’s second major customer in the US, an industrial company in the agricultural technology sector, continued to suffer from unfavorable economic conditions. Bossard was, however, able to effectively compensate for the lower demand with new business.
Business in Asia also grew in 2016. Although sales in Swiss francs rose a mere 0.6% to CHF 107.3 million, the progress is evident in the 3.1% increase in local currency.
In India, Taiwan and Singapore the group realized growth in the double digit range. On the Chinese market more business volume was generated in the third and fourth quarters.
Bossard is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange.   News Corporate Image Brochure
A new Bossard Corporate Image Brochure is now available, focusing on the following points: 6 core benefits of Proven Productivity. The “Rule of 15-85” and the discovery of Hidden Potentials of Fastening. The success stories of Proven Productivity. 3 core competences of Bossard: Product Solutions – Application Engineering – Smart Factory Logistics.
https://www.bossard.com/en/about-us/download-center/company-brochure.aspx

Technical information about fasteners and fixings
Bossard offers access to an extensive expertise information regarding fastening technology.  Users will find information about materials of screws & nuts, corrosion protection, arrangement, design and assembly, metric ISO threads as well as tolerances. 
https://www.bossard.com/en/application-engineering/technical-resources.aspx
Outlook
The Bossard Group’s growth potential is positive overall because major macroeconomic indicators have stabilized or are showing a pronounced upward trend. Assuming the same currency conditions as in 2016 and no significant changes in Bossard’s market regions,
the group is targeting in 2017 sales between CHF 750 and CHF 760 million. It must be, however, considered that certain markets are subject to political uncertainties. In Europe, major countries including Germany and France will hold elections whose economic ramifications cannot yet be gauged. In the USA, it remains to be seen which impact the changes in economic and trade policies will have.

Company presentation
http://annualreport.bossard.com/sites/default/files/pdf/Bossard_GB16_EN_Full.pdf
Sources
https://www.bossard.com/-/media/bossard-group/website/documents/press-releases-english/press-releases-2017/press-release-result-2016.pdf?la=en&hash=A45A48F8102AB9701E3898195E34047FB76ED7D8
http://annualreport.bossard.com/en#shareholders_report
https://www.nzz.ch/wirtschaft/zuger-schraubenhaendler-bossard-meldet-bestes-resultat-in-der-firmengeschichte-ld.149867
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Norma Group

Norma Group, Maintal/Germany (22/03/2017): The supplier of engineered joining technology for many industry sectors with more than 6,600 employees worldwide, generated sales of around €894.9 million in 2016. That is an increase by 0.6% compared to the previous year to (2015: €889.6 million). The acquisition of Parker Hannifin's Autoline business contributed €3.5 million to this result. Autoline manufactures quick connectors for fluid lines at its sites in France, Mexico and China. In organic terms, the company grew by 0.9% compared to the previous year. Currency effects negatively impacted sales growth by 0.7%. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of intangible assets (adjusted EBITA) increased by 0.8% to €157.5 million (2015: €156.3 million). The group thus achieved an adjusted EBITA margin of 17.6% (2015: 17.6%). Thanks to the diversification strategy, broad geographic presence and sector-specific positioning, the group was able to partially offset the losses on the US market for commercial vehicles and agricultural machinery.
The Norma group continued on its growth course in the EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) region in 2016 and increased its sales by 3.8% compared to the previous year to €432.0 million (2015: €416.0 million). This solid growth was mainly due to the positive development of the European automobile industry. The company also invested in innovative production technologies and test capacities last year to support its future growth: Thanks to a new multi-layer extrusion facility in France, NORMA Group meets its customers' current as well as future technical requirements. New injection molding machines in Poland and Serbia enable local production and reduce transport costs. Modern production and assembly lines for plastic connectors and hose clamps made of metal in Germany, Sweden and the Czech Republic increase the company's productivity. In addition, the group has expanded its test labs at its plants even further in order to be able to perform comprehensive performance tests in-house and maintain the same high quality standards.
Sales in the Americas region decreased by 3.5% in 2016 to €381.6 million (2015: €395.3 million). This was mainly due to the weak commercial vehicle and agricultural machinery business in the US, which could not be offset by the good development of the water business. Due to the increasing demand in the area of water management, the group has modernized its production facilities and commissioned, among other things, new fully automatic injection molding machines in the US. In Mexico, the group has installed additional assembly lines for urea lines to meet the growing demand for selective catalytic reduction (SCR) technologies, which is being promoted by stricter exhaust gas standards.
The Asia-Pacific region continued to develop dynamically, increasing its sales by 3.9% to €81.3 million in 2016 compared to the previous fiscal year (2015: €78.2 million). The implementation of stricter exhaust gas standards such as Euro 6 is playing an increasingly important role in this region as well. In China, Norma Group has invested in extrusion systems for the production of urea lines, which will help customers in the motor vehicle industry meet the more stringent legal requirements.
Norma Group SE is listed on the German stock exchange (Prime Standard) and included in the MDAX index.

News and projects
Acquisition of Chinese joining products manufacturer
On March, 28th, the Norma Group signed a purchase agreement to acquire 85% of the shares in Fengfan Fastener (Shaoxing) Co., Ltd. (“Fengfan”), based in Shaoxing City, China. Subject to approval by the relevant authorities, the transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2017.
Founded in 1988, Fengfan manufactures joining products made of stainless steel, nylon and specialty materials. Its portfolio includes cable ties, fastening elements and specially coated, fire-resistant textiles, for example. The company uses cutting, coating, casting and injection molding processes in production. With around 190 employees, Fengfan supplies to customers in the shipbuilding and heavy industries as well as to manufacturers of transport vehicles. Its products are marketed on the domestic Chinese market and exported to other countries. Its preliminary annual sales amounted to around €15 million in 2016. Fengfan has a production and sales site in Shaoxing City in the Zhejiang Province.

Outlook
Norma Group will continue to rely on diversification in the future and will therefore also invest in global production and test capacities. The group expects a moderate revival of the international economy in 2017. Growth of the global economy will most likely be slightly above last year's level, driven mainly by industrialized and emerging Asian markets. Overall, the Management Board of Norma Group expects group sales to grow organically by around 1 to 3% compared to the previous year. The Autoline and Lifial acquisitions are expected to account for additional sales of approximately € 45 million. The company will aim to achieve a sustained adjusted EBITA margin at the previous year's level of more than 17% (2016: 17.6%; 2015: 17.6%; 2014: 17.5%).

Company presentation
http://investors.normagroup.com/~/media/Files/N/Norma-Group-IR/eng-version/financial-reports/2016/NOR2016_EN_Gesamt_Linked.pdf
Sources
http://otp.investis.com/clients/de/norma_group/omx/omx-story.aspx?newsid=55737&cid=1328&culture=en-US
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SFS Group
SFS Group, Heerbrugg/Switzerland (10/03/2017): The supplier of fastening and precision components and logistics solutions with more than 8,600 employees achieved an organic growth of 5.9% in the 2016 financial year. Consolidated sales reached a record high of CHF 1,437 million. This represents an increase of 4.4% from the previous year. The adjusted EBITA margin excluding the accounting gains on the sale of company property amounted to 14.4%. This represents a significant increase in profitability compared to 2015 (adjusted EBITA margin of 12.5%). Net income including the proceeds of property disposals amounted to CHF 122.2 million (previous year: CHF 105.0 million).
SFS has significantly expanded its position in the growing medical device sector through the acquisitions of Tegra Medical (USA) and Stamm (CH). These two transactions have given SFS access to a large, and largely complementary, portfolio of top-quality customers, while enhancing its range of technical competencies.
The Engineered Components segment reported sales of CHF 768.1 million, an increase of 3.8% versus the previous year. Sales of the core business activities, i.e. excluding the trading activities of the Electronics division as well as consolidation and exchange-rate effects, showed an increase of 8.0% on a comparable basis. This improvement was supported by the scale-up of important customer projects.
The Fastening Systems segment carried its good momentum from the first half into the second half of the year and generated sales of CHF 355.6 million (+8.8%, +7.5% on a comparable basis). Growth was broadly based in terms of application areas and geographies. Profitability also increased significantly versus the previous financial year and resulted in an EBITA margin of 9.0% (+220 basis points).

News and projects
SFS strengthens its operations in Switzerland
SFS is investing approximately CHF 36 million through mid-2018 to increase capacity and productivity at major sites in Switzerland: Logistics infrastructure is being modernized and heat-treating capacity is being expanded. Modern and efficient logistics infrastructure allows SFS unimarket (Distribution & Logistics segment) to deliver products to customers quickly, easily and reliably. With several warehouses SFS unimarket can fill orders for screws, architectural hardware and tools from customers throughout Switzerland very quickly. Up to 70,000 items are kept in stock at the central warehouse in Rebstein, which has about approximately 18,000 m² of warehouse space and is one of the most modern logistics centers in Europe. SFS is planning to increase its storage capacity by more than 4,500m² by mid-2018 so it can supply its customers with an even wider range of goods. Warehouse logistics infrastructure will also be upgraded and expanded as part of this project. Logistics infrastructure is also being upgraded in Heerbrugg.
SFS is also investing approximately CHF 20 million in its heat-treating operations in Heerbrugg. The construction of a new building and installation of additional heat-treating systems will ensure the smooth ramp-up of the recent project wins and the realization of future growth. Production floor space will increase by approximately 1,800m² upon completion of the new building on the north side of the current facility. SFS expects operations at the new heat-treating facility to commence in the summer of 2017.

Outlook
Thanks to the above mentioned acquisitions, SFS established a firm position in the growing medical device market. SFS expects sales to grow by 8–10% in the 2017 financial year including consolidation effects and the adjusted EBITA margin to climb to 14.2–15.2% of net sales.

Company presentation
http://www.sfs.ch/sfs_download/media/en/general_media/
downloadcenter/sfs_gruppe/investor_relations/financial_publications_2014/
sfs_annual_report_2016.pdf

Sources
https://www.sfs.biz/en/web/medien/medienmitteilungen/news_detail_35922368.html
http://www.fuw.ch/article/sfs-steigert-umsatz/   --------------------------
Latest trends – Market Research Reports
Fasteners and bulk metal forming technology
Global Machine Screws Market 2017
March 2017
https://dailyhover.com/global-machine-screws-market-2017-2/
Screw Fasteners Global Market 2017-2022
March 2017
http://www.9dimenreports.com/screw-fasteners-global-market-2017-2022-manufacturers-fastenal-dokka-fasteners-arconic-infasco-nucor-fastener-nitto-seiko-co-ltd/
Global Turnlock Fastener Industry Market Research Report 2017
Feb 2017 
http://www.mynewsdesk.com/qyresearch/pressreleases/global-turnlock-fastener-industry-market-research-report-2017-1813131
Screw, Nut & Bolt Manufacturing in the US: Market Research Report
Feb 2017
https://www.ibisworld.com/industry/default.aspx?indid=646
Global Industrial Fasteners Market expected to reach USD 116.5 Billion by 2022: Zion Market Research
Jan 2017
https://www.zionmarketresearch.com/sample/industrial-fasteners-market
Global Industrial Fasteners Industry 2017 Market Research Report
Jan 2017
http://www.orbisresearch.com/reports/index/global-industrial-fasteners-industry-2017-market-research-report
Industrial Fasteners Market Analysis Forecasts, 2014 - 2025
Jan 2017  
http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/industrial-fasteners-market
2017 Market Research Report on Screw, Nut & Bolt Manufacturing Industry
http://www.anythingresearch.com/industry/Screw-Nut-Bolt-Manufacturing.htm
Global Metal Forming Machine Tools Market
March 2017
http://www.orbisresearch.com/reports/index/global-metal-forming-machine-tools-market-2016-2020
The information has been compiled by Dipl.-Ing. Konrad Dengler, a technical journalist specialised in industrial activities.


Link to previous issue of the column:
Looking at the markets: Bekaert, Salzgitter, Voestalpine >>

You might also be interested in reading:
Impressions of Fastener Fair Stuttgart 2017 >>
All you need to know about Fastener Fair Stuttgart 2017 >>