Analytik Jena Announces Sales and Earnings Forecast for 2009/2010 Financial Year

Jena, March 25, 2010 – Analytik Jena AG (Frankfurt DE0005213508, Prime Standard: AJA) expects sales of about EUR 80.0 m for the current financial year 2009/2010 and hence renewed double digit growth compared with the preceding record year 2008/2009. The Thuringian manufacturer of analytical instrumentation technology announced this today at its tenth Ordinary Annual General Meeting in Jena.

Chairman of the Executive Board Klaus Berka also forecast an increase in earnings at the shareholders’ meeting. Here the company is expecting operating earnings (EBIT) of between EUR 7.0 and 7.5 m (previous year: EUR 6.3 m) and earnings per share of between EUR 0.70 and 0.85 (previous year: EUR 0.51). The forecast predicts that the EUR/USD exchange rate will stabilize at its current level or shift further in favor of the USD.

"If we succeed in achieving these results, the Analytik Jena AG Executive Board will recommend to the Supervisory Board at the balance sheet meeting in December 2010 to propose a resolution to the 2011 Annual General Meeting for the first dividend payment in the company’s ten-year history as a listed entity," says Klaus Berka.

With regard to the first half of the year currently underway and ending on March 31, 2010, the Group is confirming its forecast of slightly lower year-on-year earnings and a sales increase to some EUR 40.0 m (previous year: EUR 35.5 m).

"Based on an ongoing stable level of incoming orders in Analytical Instrumentation and growth in Life Science, we expect to be able to offset the slight fall in business in Optics. We anticipate around the same sales level in the second half of the year as in the first half," continues Berka.