Preliminary figures show record turnover and earnings for 2004

FEBRUARY 10--Basler AG (Ahrensburg, Germany; www.baslerweb.com) has achieved the best-ever results in the company's history, according to preliminary figures for 2004. Turnover for 2004 rose by 47% to Euro 52.3 million (2003: Euro 35.7 million).

Both company divisions played their part in contributing to this success. Vision components (high-performance cameras for industrial applications) increased turnover by 26% from Euro 13.0 million (2003) to Euro 16.4 million (2004), while vision systems (turn-key inspection systems for mass production) boosted its turnover by 58% from Euro 22.7 million (2003) to Euro 35.9 million (2004). The increase in turnover is mainly attributable to product innovation, which has broadened the company's share of all target markets.

Higher turnover together with optimized productivity has lead to pretax earnings for 2004 of Euro 5.1 million (2003: Euro 0.7 million). A positive tax result of Euro +1.7 million yielded a net result of Euro 6.9 million (2003: Euro 3.0 million). Net earnings per share improved by 131% reaching Euro 1.96 (2003: Euro 0.85).

In spite of the strong increase in turnover, a positive net cash flow for 2004 of Euro 1.5 million was still recorded (2003: Euro 1.4 million).

Overall order income of Euro 50 million was achieved for 2004 - an increase of 12% compared to the previous year (2003: Euro 44.9 million). These provisional figures are awaiting attestation by the auditors and approval by the Supervisory Body. The definitive figures together with the annual report will be presented at the press conference to be given for the publication of the financial statement on 9th March.

Based on conservative estimates for the 2005 financial year, company management expects a slight increase in turnover in the lower one digit percentage region with good profitability similar to that of 2004. From today's perspective it is expected that the first and fourth quarter of 2005 will be weaker than in the previous year, while the second and third quarter of 2005 should prove more vital than they were in 2004.