30 Percent Higher Dividend than last Year
This year’s Annual Shareholders Meeting of Pfeiffer Vacuum Technology AG, a leading manufacturer of high-quality vacuum pumps, vacuum gauges, mass spectrometers and complete vacuum systems, was held on June 8, 2005 in Wetzlar.
The meeting was attended by over 400 shareholders, as well as representatives from shareholder associations and banks. All of the resolutions, including ratification of the actions of the Management and Supervisory Boards, passed with high majorities.
The shareholders welcomed the significantly higher distribution: A dividend of 90 cents per dividend-entitled share of stock will be paid to the shareholders from retained earnings (last year: 70 cents per share). Ernst & Young was re-elected to serve as the company’s independent auditor.
In his review of the past year, Chief Executive Officer Wolfgang Dondorf again discussed the 2004 fiscal year, in which the company grew its sales by 8.5 percent from € 144 to € 156.2 million and posted before-tax income of 19.6 million, or 12.6 % of sales – in spite of the impact of its deficit DVD business, from which the company withdrew at the beginning of 2005. Pfeiffer Vacuum’s concentration on its highly profitable core business was very well received by the participants at the Annual Shareholders Meeting.
Chief Executive Officer Wolfgang Dondorf was cautiously optimistic about the outlook for the current year, in which the company intends to grow faster than the market and return to its former profitability. This position is underscored by the fact that new orders outpaced sales in both the 1st quarter as well as in April and May of 2005.
During the general discussion, shareholders and representatives of the shareholder associations voiced positive comments about the company’s development and were extremely pleased about the higher dividend distribution. The shareholder representatives expressly welcomed the clear language and unembellished portrayal of the company’s situation, which they feel have made Pfeiffer Vacuum one of the stars on the stock exchange, creating sustained shareholder value for years.
A further issue that was discussed was the speculative rumor that had recently been spread by an investment newsletter regarding Pfeiffer Vacuum’s impending acquisition by a major investor. The chief executive officer reiterated that there are no indications of any such acquisition, nor is there any contact with the investor named in the rumor.
Source: Pfeiffer Vacuum GmbH
