2016 - The fiscal year in numbers
B. Braun closed out the 2016 fiscal year with sales of 6.5 billion Euros - an increase of 5.6 percent in comparison to the previous year (6.1 billion Euros).
EBITDA growth during the fiscal year exceeded our expectations. We generated an EBITDA of € 995.4 million at constant exchange rates. This index is thus 11.8 percent above the previous year. Even with consideration to exchange rate effects, EBITDA, at € 975.0 million, exceeded our internal targets. Consolidated net income amounted to € 396.0 million, up 23.9 percent from the year before (€ 319.7 million). As expected, B. Braun's Avitum division posted very strong growth. The other divisions were also able to increase their sales.
| 2015 | 2016 | Change in % | |
| Sales (in € million) | 6,129.8 | 6,471.0 | + 5.6 |
| EBITDA (in € million) | 878.1 | 975.0 | + 11.0 |
| Operating profit (in € million) | 482.9 | 582.2 | + 20.6 |
| Employees (as of December 31) | 55,719 | 58,037 | + 4.2 |
Through the continuous expansion of our production capacity in conjunction with select acquisitions, we were able to meet the growing demand for disposable and capital goods in the health care market and achieve strong volume growth. Price competition in the health care market remains high and is weighing down our earnings.
Using treatment and service concepts that create value for our clients, as well as innovative products, we continue to develop our business model to meet this price and competitive pressure. Additionally, steps to reduce costs and increase internal efficiency were taken in previous years that produced results during the fiscal year. This active and strategic approach resulted in improved profitability in 2016, despite harsher market conditions. Overall, we are satisfied with performance for the fiscal year. The B. Braun Group is in good, stable financial condition. At the present time, we are not aware of any factors that could significantly impact the Group’s position.
The core themes of our Strategy 2020 are system partnership, collaboration and profitability. They are pursued in all divisions and regions and supported by central services and staff departments. The goal is to grow together in order to ensure that our company will be able to operate independently in the current strategic period. This will allow us in the future to continue making a contribution to protecting and improving the health of people all over the world.
As a system partner, we aim to provide our customers with the best-possible service. In many cases, added value for our customers is created through the interplay of several different B. Braun products and services. This is due to our broad portfolio and the resulting combinations of products and services, which is a particular strength of ours. We are convinced that high quality at fair prices, products which are customized to align with treatment methods and customer processes and absolutely reliable delivery offer the added value which is required today. We have set the goal of increasing sales by up to seven percent per year by 2020. Annual sales can then be increased to about eight billion Euros at the end of the strategic period.