Excluding the sale of 40% of Cintra, earnings grew 18%
Operating profit increased 30% to 485.1 million euros and the sales margin improved to 9.6%, from 8.8% in 2001
Consolidated revenues rose 19% to 5,040.2 million euros: construction (+10.4%), infrastructure (+30.1%), property (+65.2%) and services (+58.2%)
The construction backlog amounted to 5,922 million euros, the property backlog to 955 million euros and the services backlog to 816 million euros
Ferrovial had a net cash balance of 303 million euros at year-end
Gross capital investments in the year totaled 541 million euros
Ferrovial´s net profit surged 108.8% to 455.8 million euros; excluding the sale of 40% of toll road subsidiary Cintra, it grew 18.1%. The considerable advance in all the business areas, the positive margin performance and the key operating figures (backlogs and toll road traffic) guarantee activity in the coming months and continued to boost Ferrovial´s growth in a year in which there were the following significant events: Ferrovial obtained the Sydney airport and N4-N6 toll road (Ireland) concessions, three toll roads opened to traffic, and it increased its stake in 407 Express Toll Route (Canada).
Operating profit grew 29.9% to 485.1 million euros and the sales margin improved from 8.8% in 2001 to 9.6%. Non-construction activities represented 68% of the total and infrastructure accounted for 43% of the total.
Net revenues increased 18.9% year-on-year to 5,040.2 million euros in 2002. All the business lines advanced considerably: the rapid pace of production in Spain due to the Infrastructure Plan boosted construction revenues by 10.4%, and the increase in revenues at the Canadian and Ausol (Málaga-Estepona) toll roads and at Bristol Airport, plus the greater contribution from the Chilean toll roads, boosted the infrastructure concession division by 30.1%. Property revenues increased 62.2%, boosted by the strong pace of new home deliveries. Service revenues grew 58.2%.
Through September, sales outside Spain amounted to 1,439 million euros and accounted for 29% of Group revenues. Poland, Portugal, Canada and Chile provided large contributions.
Gross capital investments totaled 541.4 million euros, mainly in infrastructure (417.7 million euros), to acquire a stake in Sydney airport and an additional 5.8% of 407 ETR (Toronto, Canada). The company also invested 343 million euros to acquire land for property development.
At the end of December 2002, Ferrovial had a net cash balance of 302 million euros, compared with 287 million euros in debt in 2001. Consequently, leverage disappeared (vs. 24% at 2001 year-end).
In 2002, Ferrovial was the first Spanish construction group to enter the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes, the world´s leading sustainability benchmark.
Construction and infrastructuremajor growth engines
Construction revenues increased 10.4% to 3,788.9 million euros in 2002, evidencing the strong pace of production in Spain due to the Infrastructure Plan. Despite this intense activity, the construction backlog reached a record high: 5,922 million euros (+5.8% year-on-year). At 2002 year-end, the construction area´s net profit totaled 120.5 million euros.
Infrastructure revenues grew 30.1% to 449.9 million euros, with sizeable contributions from Canada´s 407 ETR, where revenues increased by 18%, and Ausol (the Málaga-Estepona-Guadiaro toll road), which grew 27%, and greater contributions from the Chilean toll roads and Bristol airport. In 2002, the M45 toll road, the Artxanda tunnel (Bilbao) and the Estepona-Guadiaro stretch (Ausol II) became operational.
Ferrovial obtained two major concessions in 2002: Sydney airport (Australia´s largest, with nearly 25 million passengers), in which it acquired a 19.6% stake for 233 million euros; and the N4-N6 toll road in Ireland (the country´s first), which will link Dublin with the north-west. The number of parking spaces managed by Ferrovial increased by 15,000 to 180,000, consolidating its leading position in Spain. Net profit at the infrastructure division (which comprises 60% of Ferrovial´s toll roads and all its airports and car parks) amounted to 56.1 million euros in 2002.
Property development and services: significant growth
Property development revenues also grew substantially, by 65.2% to 619.7 million euros in 2002, due to the strong pace of new home deliveries in the year. The property backlog increased significantly (+24.6%) to 955 million euros and guarantees sales throughout 2003 and most of 2004. In 2002, presales increased by 8.6% to 655 million euros, boosted by new property developments in the fourth quarter. Net profit in the property development division amounted to 55.2 million euros in 2002.
Service revenues grew by 58.2% in 2002 to 340.1 million euros and the backlog rose by 11.8% to 816 million euros. The services area (which includes urban services, facility management and integrated road upkeep) contributed 4.2 million euros to Group net profit.
