RHI Magnesita FY EBITDA rises as price hikes offset increased costs

Refractory products group RHI Magnesita said on Monday that both revenues and adjusted earnings had risen in the twelve months ended 31 December.

RHI Magnesita stated full-year revenues were said full-year revenues had grown 22% to €3.31bn, while adjusted underlying earnings had risen 21% to €384.0m. Adjusted EBITDA margins improved 60 basis points to 11.6%.

The FTSE 250-listed group also said higher costs had been fully offset through its €600.0m price increase programme, as well as increased sales volumes and market share gains in both the steel and industrial segments.

Looking forward, RHI cautioned that volatility and uncertainty were expected to persist across all markets in 2023, except India, while subdued volumes seen in the fourth-quarter were also seen carrying over into the first-half of 2023, with a contraction in construction activity affecting steel, cement and lime, non-ferrous metals and glass demand globally.

"However, demand softness will be offset by continued strong growt h in India and the group will also benefit from additional earnings from new acquisitions and cost savings from its strategic initiatives," said RHI.

"The group's outlook for revenue, EBITDA and EBITA in 2023 is broadly in line with current analyst consensus, with up to a 5% reduction in sales volumes and lower refractory pricing expected to lead to lower revenues, before contribution from new acquisitions. Costs are expected to remain flat or increase as higher energy and labour costs offset lower sea freight and purchased raw materials, resulting in a group EBITA margin of around 10% in 2023 (2022: 11.6%)."

As of 0935 GMT, RHI shares were up 1.24% at 2,686.80p.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com