Fluidra accelerates its growth and strengthens its foundations for expansion

Fluidra, the Spanish listed multinational group devoted to developing applications for the sustainable use of water, released its results today for the first semester of 2015 and announced the acquisition of Waterlinx in South Africa.

The company reported sales of 352.2 million euros, EBITDA of 51.0 million euros and a net profit of 16.5 million euros. Compared with the first half of last year, the growth in sales was 5.0%, EBITDA 2.3% and net profit 2.0%. Excluding one-time fees, like-for-like sales translated as 9.3%, the growth of EBITDA as 14.2% and the net profit rose by 66.5% to reach 19.6 million euros.

The excellent evolution of sales was particularly prevalent throughout Spain (+11.8%), France, Australia and Latin America with sustained growths. By business units, the Pool Unit grew by almost 7% to reach 245.6 million euros. The Water Treatment Unit grew by 17.4% thanks to business in the residential pool sector, especially in Spain and Australia. The turnover of the Irrigation Unit decreased from 19.8 to 11.5 million euros due to a divestiture in France last year; disregarding this effect, growth was robust. The Fluid Handling Unit saw a decrease from 33.1 to 31.7 million euros, due to the macroeconomic environment in China.

Acquisition of the market leader in South Africa
Fluidra also announces the acquisition of 72% of the shareholding in South Africa’s leader in the pool sector, WaterLinx. WaterLinx is the biggest manufacturer on the African continent of pool and water treatment components, with a sales volume of 32 million euros.

Eloi Planes, Fluidra’s CEO, stated that ” beyond the good results it has been a really positive first half. We have seen growth in practically all markets and we expect a similar trend for the rest of the year. The acquisition of WaterLinx in South Africa is another key component of our growth strategy in the southern hemisphere that will enable us to make up for the seasonality of our business, an important foundation for our planned expansion.”

Fluidra, national and international benchmark for sustainable use of water
Fluidra is a multinational group listed on the Spanish Stock Exchange, dedicated to developing applications for sustainable water use. The company specialises in solutions for water conservation, handling, treatment and enjoyment.

Fluidra operates in 44 countries by way of 150 branches and production centres located in the main markets. Fluidra products are distributed to more than 170 countries due to an extensive sales network. The group has some 3,600 employees.

Respect for water and its rational use are two concepts at the core of the philosophy of the group. The companies which comprise Fluidra, some of these with 40 years of experience, have grown with this vision, specializing in a four business units: water treatment, fluid handling, irrigation and pool/wellness.