With customer-friendly services, glasses at the best prices and wide-ranging guarantees, Fielmann has increased the number of units sold, sales revenue and profits in the reporting year 2018.
The number of units sold went up to 8.15 million pairs of glasses (previous year: 8.11 million). External sales including VAT grew to € 1.65 billion (previous year: € 1.61 billion) and consolidated sales rose to € 1.43 billion (previous year: € 1.39 billion). The pretax result increased to an anticipated € 250 million (previous year: € 248.6 million) and the net income for the year went up to € 174 million (previous year: € 172.9 million).
Fielmann is maintaining its long-standing shareholder-friendly dividend policy. Considering the company's positive development in the financial year 2018 as well as the available liquidity, the Management Board and the Supervisory Board will recommend a dividend payout of € 1.90 per share (previous year: € 1.85) to the Annual General Meeting on 11 July 2019. Based on the year-end closing price, the dividend yield amounts to 3.5% (previous year: 2.5%). The total dividend pay-out is € 159.6 million (previous year: € 155.4 million).
The basis of our success is having highly skilled, motivated employees. Fielmann created over 800 additional jobs in the reporting year, and is the largest employer and training provider in the optical industry in Germany. At the end of 2018, Fielmann employed 19,379 members of staff (previous year: 18,522), of whom 3,853 were apprentices (previous year: 3,417). National awards testify to the high standard of our training.
At the end of the reporting year, Fielmann operated 736 stores (previous year: 723). In 2019 Fielmann is continuing to expand: there are plans to open new stores in our German-speaking markets, as well as in Italy and Poland. In addition, Fielmann is investing in digitization and is working on a unique omnichannel world of quality prescription eyewear. We will strengthen our market position in the current financial year.
Hamburg, February 2019
Fielmann Aktiengesellschaft
The Management Board