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Technology Stocks : SAP A.G. -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Informatiker who wrote (754)	4/21/1998 8:15:00 AM
From: Ibexx	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3424

Thread, Tuesday April 21, 6:55 am Eastern Time Company Press Release SAP Announces Strong 1998 First Quarter Results WALLDORF, Germany--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 21, 1998--SAP AG, the world's leading provider of enterprise application software, today announced its results for the first quarter of 1998. Sales in the first quarter grew 63% over the comparable period last year to DM 1.68 billion (US $ 911 million(a)). Continued demand for SAP's products as well as a positive currency effect drove revenue growth. Costs rose 62% to DM 1.44 billion while pre-tax profit increased 72% to DM 311 million. Continuous innovation and improvements in product offerings fueled customer demand for SAP's software. The powerful sales growth in the first quarter can also be attributed to the successful re-alignment of SAP's vertical industry efforts into more customer-focused and solutions-driven units aimed at all key global industries. Growing penetration of middle market and small enterprises further contributed to first quarter sales. The strength of the US dollar and other key currencies relative to the deutsche mark accounted for 5% of revenue growth and 2% of pre-tax profit growth. ''The momentum from a strong 1997 has gotten us off to a good start in 1998. Of course, sales growth in the first three months of the year is not indicative of how the business will perform for the remainder of the year. Therefore, we are maintaining our forecast of 30-35% revenue growth for the year, given our expectations for slower growth in the second half,'' said Prof. Dr. Henning Kagermann, Co-Chairman-designate of SAP AG. Balanced regional sales growth Sales growth was evenly distributed across all of the major business regions. In the Americas, sales grew by 68% to DM 749 million. In Europe (ex-Germany), sales rose 75% to DM 385 million; sales in Germany increased 53% to DM 352 million. Asia Pacific sales climbed 67% to DM 179 million. ''We continue to provide comprehensive solutions for customers of all sizes and industries,'' said Paul Wahl, CEO of SAP America and Executive Board Member of SAP AG. ''We are particularly pleased by customer response to our efforts in the automotive and retailing sectors.'' Product sales comprised the majority of first quarter revenues rising 57% to DM 1.07 billion. Product sales represented 63% of total sales. (1997 1Q: 66%). Revenues from consulting and training grew 69% to DM 408 million and 91% to DM 197 million, respectively. Important contracts signed in the first three months of 1998 include: in Germany, RWE AG; in Italy, ENI; in the US, Phillips Petroleum Company [NYSE:P - news]; and in Japan, Sakura Bank. Highlights of the first quarter 1998 At CeBIT, the world's largest IT conference in Hannover, Germany, SAP recorded an increase of 60% in sales contacts. More than 1,000 people attended SAP's ''Next Generation ERP'' symposium held in San Francisco where the company showcased its newest offerings. These innovative products are stand-alone solutions independent from SAP's core R/3 system. Customer availability is planned, ahead of schedule, in May, along with the enhanced version of R/3 4.0. ''With our innovative products, we are moving into a new dimension of SAP solutions which will work together with our flagship R/3 component family to form the basis for SAP's future growth,'' said Prof. Dr. h.c. Hasso Platter, Co-Chairman of SAP AG. SAP AG preference and common shares are listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, as well as a number of other exchanges. SAP is a component of the DAX, the index of 30 German blue chip companies. In the US, SAP's unrestricted ADR, each equivalent to one-third of an SAP preference share, trades over the counter under the symbol ''SAPHY''. Information on the SAP AG preference shares is available on Bloomberg under the symbol SAP3 GR, on Reuters under SAPG_p.F or DE and on Quotron under SAGVD.EU. Information on the SAP common shares is available on Bloomberg under the symbol SAP GR, on Reuters under SAPG.F and on Quotron under SAGR.EU. Additional information is available on SAP AG's home page: sap.com. FOR TABULAR INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT TAYLOR RAFFERTY ASSOCIATES AT 212-889-4350 ______ Enjoy! Ibexx