Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri delivered an improvement in revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2018, with total backlog reaching record levels.
The company’s revenue in the first nine months of 2018 increased by 8.5% compared to the same period of the previous year. Shipbuilding revenue amounted to EUR 2.95 billion, up 6.5% from EUR 2.77 billion for the first nine months of 2017.
Such revenue comprises EUR 1.97 billion from the cruise ships business, up from EUR 1.95 billion reported a year earlier, and EUR 976 million from the naval vessels business, up by 20.2% from EUR 812 million in the same period of 2017.
The company’s total backlog was at a record level of EUR 32.5 billion. Backlog as at September 30, 2018 was EUR 26 billion, up from EUR 20.3 billion reported in the first nine months of 2017, with 104 ships in the order book.
“Revenue growth in the coming years will be ensured by a workload that, in terms of certainty and long term visibility has no equal in the country’s industrial landscape. Indeed, our total backlog stands at EUR 32 billion, with scheduled deliveries stretching to 2027,” Giuseppe Bono , Fincantieri’s Chief Executive Officer, said.
EBITDA was also up by 20.8% from the first nine months of 2017 to EUR 281 million with an EBITDA margin of 7.3% increasing from the 6.5% reported for the nine-month period of 2017. The rise was driven by the further positive performance of the shipbuilding business in the quarter.
Fincantieri forecasts results for the year 2018 which are in line with the economic and financial projections outlined in the Business Plan 2018-2022. The growth in revenues forecasted for the fourth quarter of the year enables the group to confirm the target of a 3-6% increase in revenues on an annual basis with a margin of around 7.5%.
By the end of 2018, the company expects its net financial position to be a net debt of EUR 400-600 million, in line with the constant growth of the size and value of the cruise ships under construction and with the delivery schedule.