Press releases

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- 10:11 CEST

CIR: filing of documentation for AGM

Milan, 5 August 2022 – Regarding the General Meeting of the Shareholders of CIR S.p.A., to be convened in extraordinary and ordinary session for 12 September 2022, 10.00 a.m., at a single calling, it is announced that the following documentation is available at the Company registered offices (Via Ciovassino 1, Milan), on the website www.cirgroup.it (section Governance/Shareholders meetings) and on the authorized storage mechanism eMarket STORAGE:

  • the Report of the Board of Directors on the proposed cancellation of 170,000,000 treasury shares currently owned by the company without a corresponding share capital reduction and related amendment to Art. 4.1 of the Company Bylaws (item 1 – extraordinary part);
  • the Report of the Board of Directors on the proposed reduction of the share capital pursuant to Art. 2445 of the Civil Code by posting to reserves an amount of euro 218,603,657 and thus from the current euro 638,603,657 to 420,000,000, without the cancellation of shares, with the aim of making the capital structure of the company more flexible and related amendment of Art. 4.1 of the Company Bylaws (item 2 – extraordinary part);
  • the Report of the Board of Directors on the proposed authorization to buy back own shares and use them as appropriate (item 1 – ordinary part).

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 1 August 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 25 and 29 July 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 195,706 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4044, for a total amount of € 79,146.66.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 190,217,477 treasury shares, equal to 14.89% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 13:41 CEST

Notice of Extraordinary and Ordinary General Meeting of the Shareholders

Milan, 29 July 2022 – The Board of Directors of CIR S.p.A. – Compagnie Industriali Riunite (“CIR” or the “Company”), which met today in Milan under the chairmanship of Rodolfo De Benedetti, resolved to call an extraordinary and ordinary General Meeting of the Shareholders for 12 September 2022, at 10:00 am, at a single call, with the following Agenda:

Extraordinary Part

  1. Cancellation of 170,000,000 treasury shares currently owned by the company without a corresponding share capital reduction. Amendment to Art. 4.1 of the Company Bylaws. Resolutions pertaining to and resulting from the same.
  2. Reduction of the share capital pursuant to Art. 2445 of the Civil Code by posting to reserves an amount of euro 218,603,657 and thus from the current euro 638,603,657 to 420,000,000, without the cancellation of shares, with the aim of making the capital structure of the company more flexible. Amendment of Art. 4.1 of the Company Bylaws. Resolutions pertaining to and resulting from the same.

Ordinary Part

  1. Authorization to buy back treasury shares subject to the revocation of the previous and related authorization to dispose of the same treasury shares.

The Board of Directors also approved the explanatory reports pursuant to Art. 125-ter of D. Lgs. no. 58 of 24 February 1998, as subsequently amended and supplemented, and to Art. 72, paragraph 1-bis, of Consob Regulation no. 11971 of 14 May 1999, as subsequently amended.

Extraordinary Part

As regards the first item on the Agenda of the Extraordinary General Meeting of the Shareholders, it is proposed that 170,000,000 treasury shares currently owned by the Company, representing 13.31% of the share capital be cancelled. The cancellation would be carried out without any share capital reduction given that the shares representing the Company’s share capital have no indication of a nominal value.

From an accounting point of view, if deliberated, the cancellation of the treasury shares would not have any effects on the economic result and would not cause any change in the total value of shareholders’ equity, but would lead to an increase in the implicit value of the shares that have not been cancelled.  Indeed, from an accounting point of view, there would be a reduction of the own shares in the portfolio and a corresponding reduction of an equal amount in the treasury share reserve.

Following the cancellation of 170,000,000 treasury shares, on the basis of the treasury shares owned by the Company as of 28 July 2022, the Company would have a remaining number of 20,164,977 treasury shares, representing 1.82% of the number of shares that make up the share capital. The residual treasury shares would be sufficient to fulfil the obligations resulting from the current programs of assignment of shares in the Company to employees, members of the Boards of Directors of CIR and its subsidiaries, in line with the purposes of the authorization to buyback and/or dispose treasury shares approved by the Ordinary General Meeting of the Shareholders held on April 29 2022.

As regards the rationale, the operation is proposed because the number of treasury shares currently owned by the Company is close to the threshold established by Art. 2357, paragraph 3, of the Civil Code of one fifth of the share capital, and thus the Company’s flexibility to buy back more treasury shares is limited vis-à-vis its shareholders’ equity and its free cash flow. Moreover, for the moment there are no plans for the own shares in question to be used for extraordinary capital transactions.

If the transaction is effected it will entail the amendment of Article 4.1 of the Bylaws to reflect the new number of shares making up the share capital.

Lastly, it should be noted that:

  • For the proposed resolution to take effect, it must be registered in the Register of Companies pursuant to Art. 2436, paragraph 5, of the Civil Code;
  • The envisaged amendment to the Bylaws does not refer to any of the circumstances that allow the shareholders to exercise the right of withdrawal pursuant to Art. 2437 of the Civil Code.

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As regards the second item on the Agenda of the Extraordinary General Meeting of the Shareholders, the proposed transaction consists of the following:

  • A reduction of the share capital of Euro 218,603,657, from Euro 638,603,657 to Euro 420,000,000;
  • A concurrent increase of the same amount, Euro 218,603,657, of the available reserves, which considering their value at 30 June 2022, would rise from Euro 16,472,719 to Euro 235,076,376.

Therefore, at the time when this operation is carried out the amount of shareholders’ equity would not change as only the qualitative nature of the same would change. Furthermore, as the Company’s shares have no nominal value indication, the proposed capital reduction involves no cancellation of shares, or change in their intrinsic patrimonial value.

As for the rationale, the transaction is being put forward because the current situation makes it impossible to continue the distribution policy, either in terms of dividends and/or the buyback of shares, that the Company has adopted in the past, except within the limits of its net income for the year and thus the distributable reserves that may be generated in the future. The operation in question has, therefore, the aim of reconstituting a certain amount of available reserves for the Company, in order to give it in the future greater flexibility in the use of the group’s available financial resources not used for operational purposes and/or to service the operations of its investors. In particular, as an effect of the operation, such resources could be used even to approve possible dividend distributions or the buyback of shares.  On the other hand, without the transaction any such decisions would not be easily pursuable precisely because of the current composition of equity, in which distributable reserves have reached a very minimal level.

The operation would not involve any immediate outflow of resources from the Company’s capital.

It would rather form a basis to enable the Company to arrange such outflows at any time in the light of sustainability analyses that would be carried out from time to time by CIR’s Board of Directors on the basis of the information updated at that time, and after having considered a series of elements – such as the situation of the group and of the companies in the group, their business plans, the strategic options available – as a whole in order that a conscious decision can be taken that is consistent with the strategic and financial framework of the company and of the markets.

The decision to reduce the share capital and increase available reserves is consistent with other such operations effected in our country by various companies in the last few years for similar reasons and a similar rationale as those on which this proposed operation rests. 

Implementation of the operation will involve an amendment to Article 4.1 of the Company Bylaws to reflect the new amount of share capital, which would stand at Euro 420,000,000 after the voluntary capital reduction has been put in place. Article 4.1 of the Bylaws would therefore be reformulated to this effect without prejudice to any further amendments proposed in item 1 of the Agenda of the Extraordinary General Meeting of the Shareholders which – when actually approved and then registered in the Register of Companies – will amend Art. 4.1 in the part relating to the number of shares into which the Company’s capital is divided.

Lastly, it should be noted that:

  • although the capital reduction does not involve any repayment of capital to the shareholders, we believe that, in compliance with the prevailing legal and juridical opinion on the matter, Art. 2445 of the Civil Code is applicable. This article states that the capital reduction can be effected only 90 days after the date on which it  is recorded in the register of companies even if it does not involve any repayment of capital to the shareholders, provided that no creditor of the company from prior to the registration has presented opposition to the same;
  • The proposed amendment to the Bylaws does not involve any of the circumstances under which the shareholders can exercise the right of withdrawal as per the terms of Art. 2437 of the Civil Code.

Ordinary Part

As regards the sole item on the Agenda of the Ordinary General Meeting of the Shareholders, the proposal is for the cancellation (of the part not utilized) and renewal of the authorization of the same Board of Directors, in the light of the rules stated in Articles 2357 and following articles of the Civil Code, of Art. 32 of D.Lgs no. 58/98 (the “TUF”), of Art. 144-bis of CONSOB Resolution no. 11971/1999, of EU Regulation no. 596/2014 (the “MAR”), of EU Delegated Regulation no. 2016/1052, of Consob Resolution no. 20876 of April 3 2019 and Consob Guidelines of July 2019, for a period of 18 months to buy back a maximum of 220.000.000 of its own shares at a unit price that cannot be more than 15% higher or lower than the benchmark price recorded by the shares on regulated markets on the trading day preceding each single buyback transaction or preceding the date on which the price is fixed in the event of purchases made in accordance with the procedures stated in points (i), (iii) and (iv) of the following paragraph. In any case, when the shares are bought back with orders placed in the regulated market, the price must not be higher than the higher of the price of the last independent transaction and the highest current independent bid price on the same market, in compliance with Art. 3 of EU Delegated Regulation no. 2016/1052.

The buyback must take place in the market, in compliance with the terms of Art. 132 of the TUF and with the terms of the law or the regulations in force at the moment of the transaction and more precisely (i) through a public tender offer to buy or exchange shares; (ii) on regulated markets following operating procedures established in the rules for organizing and managing the said markets, which do not allow bids and offers to be matched directly; (iii) through the assignment pro-rata of put options to the shareholders to be assigned within 15 months of the date of the AGM resolution authorizing the same with exercise within 18 months of the same resolution; (iv) through the purchase and sale of derivative instruments traded on regulated markets that involve physical delivery of the underlying shares in compliance with the further provisions contained in Art. 144-bis of the Rules for Issuers issued by Consob, and as per the terms of Articles 5 and 13 of the MAR.

The maximum number of treasury shares that the Company is holding at any one time as an effect of deals regarding own shares held in the portfolio will in any case be limited to 20% of the total number comprising the share capital, in compliance with the terms of Art. 2357, paragraph 3, of the Civil Code.

Purchases and collocation of treasury shares must be made in accordance with the terms of Art. 5 of the Regulations and the Delegated Regulation, where applicable.

As regards the disposal (alienation) of own shares, the resolution put forward would give the Board of Directors the right to establish from time to time, in compliance with the rules applicable and/or recognized market practice at any one time, the criteria to be used for establishing the price of the same, taking into account the realization procedures to be followed, the trend of the share price in the period preceding the transaction and the best interests of the Company.

The main reasons why this authorization is being renewed are the following: (a) to fulfil obligations resulting from possible stock option plans or other awards of shares of the Company to employees or members of the Board of Directors of CIR or its subsidiaries, or to fulfil any obligations resulting from debt instruments that are convertible into or exchangeable with equity instruments; (b) to have a portfolio of own shares to use as consideration for any extraordinary transactions, even those involving an exchange of shareholdings, with other parties within the scope of transactions of interest to the Company (a so-called “stock of securities”); (c) to engage in action to support market liquidity, optimize the capital structure and remunerate shareholders in particular market conditions, all within the limits established by current rules and regulations; (d)  to take advantage of opportunities for creating value, as well as investing liquidity efficiently in relation to the market trend; (e) for any other purpose qualified by the competent Authorities as admitted market practice in accordance with applicable European and domestic rules, and with the procedures established therein.

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The notice of the General Meeting of the Shareholders and the above reports illustrating the items on the Agenda will be made available to the public following the procedures and within the time limits laid down by law and by regulations applicable. 

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- 13:26 CEST

CIR: results for first half 2022

  • Revenues at € 1,102.5 million, up by 10.4% from first half 2021
  • Positive results for Sogefi, results of KOS in recovery, results of financial management affected by the negative performance of the financial markets
  • Net income at break-even, negatively affected by the adjustment of fair value of the financial asset portfolio
  • Reduction of consolidated net debt of the operating subsidiaries
  • Net financial position of the parent company positive for € 313.3 million, after the disbursement of € 84.2 million for the buyback of own shares and despite the impairment recorded by the portfolio of financial investments in the current market situation

Milan, 29 July 2022 – The Board of Directors of CIR S.p.A. – Compagnie Industriali Riunite (“CIR” or the “Company”), which met today under the chairmanship of Rodolfo De Benedetti, has approved the Semi-Annual Financial Report as of 30 June 2022 presented by Chief Executive Officer Monica Mondardini.

Consolidated results

In the first half of 2022 the Company and its investees were operating in a complex environment due to the effects of the still ongoing pandemic, which have a direct impact on the social healthcare sector, to the increases in the cost of raw materials and energy, which affect the automotive sector, and the negative performance of the financial markets, which have had an impact on the results of the group’s investment portfolio. The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has worsened the critical issues already present in relation to raw materials, energy, the financial markets and the weakness of certain economic sectors in Europe.

Against this backdrop, KOS continued to see a recovery of its activities which began in the second quarter of 2021, after the fall caused by the pandemic, and Sogefi managed effectively the many critical factors that impacted the market; while the results of financial management suffered the inversion of the trend in the markets, suffering losses in value across all of the main asset classes.

The consolidated revenues of the Group came in at € 1,102.5 million and were up by 10.4% on the first half of 2021, with positive dynamics in both sectors of the group’s business activities.  

The group reported a net result at break-even (-€ 0.2 million) versus net income of € 21.6 million in the first half of 2021. The decline was due to the lower returns on the financial investment portfolio, with the financial companies of the group (CIR, CIR International and CIR Investimenti) contributing a negative € 10.2 million to the consolidated net result after a positive contribution of € 9.3 million in the first half of 2021.

Consolidated net financial debt before IFRS 16 stood at € 95.6 million at 30 June 2022 compared to € 85.6 million at 31 December 2021 and € 41.4 million at 30 June 2021:

  • The net debt of the subsidiaries declined to € 408.9 million from € 418.0 million at 31 December 2021 and € 446.4 million at 30 June 2021;
  • The net financial position of the Parent Company (including the subsidiaries CIR Investimenti and CIR International) remains very positive at € 313.3 million and the reduction compared to 31 December 2021 (€ 332.4 million) and 30 June 2021 (€ 405.0 million) was due mainly to the buyback of own shares for € 84.2 million over the last 12 months and to a lesser extent to the impairment losses recorded by the financial investment portfolio in the current market situation.  

Consolidated net debt, including IFRS 16 payables, stood at € 969.8 million at 30 June 2022, and included € 874.2 million for rights of use that refer mainly of the subsidiary KOS (€ 805.3 million), which operates in premises that are generally leased.

The Group’s equity amounted to € 749.4 million at 30 June 2022 (€ 740.4 million at 31 December 2021).

KOS

In 2020 the Covid-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the activities of KOS, leading to a reduction in the number of guests entering the nursing homes and in the services provided in the rehabilitation units. The recovery began in the middle of 2021 and was confirmed in the first half of 2022, although pre-pandemic levels have not yet been reached.

In the first half of 2022, the Group’s revenues came to € 346.5 million, posting a rise of 6.5% on the same period of the previous year, thanks particularly to the recovery in the nursing home sector in Italy (+16.2%) and in Germany (+5.2%).

Recurring EBIT rose from € 8.3 million to € 11.5 million (total EBIT for first half 2021 came to € 20.9 million and included non-recurring income of € 12.6 million).

Sogefi

In the first half of 2022 the market continued to have difficulty in the sourcing of raw materials and components (which even caused the temporary closure of certain of the principal car manufacturers’ production facilities worldwide) and rises in the prices of raw materials and energy, made worse by the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. World car production fell by 1.8% compared to the first half of 2021, with Europe at -7.6%, China and Mercosur in line (at +0.7% and -0.6% respectively), and NAFTA and India recovering (+4.7% e +16.4% respectively).

In this scenario, Sogefi reported revenues 12.3% higher than in the first half of 2021, due to the rise in selling prices to bring them into line with the cost of raw materials, and to the trend of exchange rates; production and sales volumes were substantially in line with first half 2021 with a positive performance compared to the market (-1.8%).

Recurring EBIT for the first half of the year was in line with that of the same period of 2021; total EBIT came to € 40.4 million versus € 47.3 million in 2021 because of higher restructuring costs (€ 4.1 million compared to € 1.3 million in the first half of 2021) and lower non-operating income (€ 3.9 million versus € 9.4 million in 2021).

The Group reported net income of € 20.8 million, in line with that of the first half of 2021, which was € 21.4 million.

Net debt (before IFRS 16) fell to € 216.4 million at 30 June 2022 from € 258.2 million at 31 December 2021 and € 261.4 million at 30 June 2021.

The first half of the year was positive for commercial activity too: the Filtration division was awarded various contracts for the supply of oil and air filters; the Air and Cooling division signed important contracts in NAFTA and Europe for the supply of thermal management products and cooling plates for electric mobility; the Suspensions division obtained contracts for components that will be produced in the new facilities in Romania and in China, even for electric vehicles. Despite the market challenges of the last two years, Sogefi has always been able to meet the needs of its clients, confirming its image of a supplier capable to deliver high quality products, with reliable service levels.

Financial management

In the first half of 2022 the impact on the markets of the war in progress and the rise in interest rates, decided on by the central banks to counter inflationary effects, was negative for all asset classes. Management of the financial assets of the parent company and the financial subsidiaries therefore reported a negative net result of € 5.1 million for adjustments made to the fair value of assets, with a return for the first half of –1.3% after income of € 12.4 million in the first half of 2021. In particular, the overall return on cash equivalent assets (shares, bonds, hedge funds) was -2.5%, while the remaining part of the portfolio (private equity and minority shareholdings) gave a positive return of 3.8%.

Significant events that have taken place since 30 June 2022

Since the close of the period there have been no significant events that could have an impact on the economic, patrimonial or financial information reported.

Outlook for the year

Visibility as to the performance of the Group’s businesses in coming months remains limited given the continuing uncertainty about the evolution of the pandemic (which has a direct effect on the healthcare sector in particular), the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the commodity and energy markets (which affect mainly the automotive sector) and the financial markets.

As far as KOS is concerned, thanks to the vaccination plan, there are expected to be less critical operational issues linked to the evolution of the pandemic. In this case the forecasts predict that the Rehabilitation and Acute services could return to pre-Covid levels already this year. For the nursing homes in Italy and Germany the time needed to return to full occupancy of the care homes is expected to be structurally longer, lasting at least until 2023. The company is in the process of performing an in-depth analysis of service models, in light of technological innovations and of the needs of its patients.

As for Sogefi, visibility as to the performance of the automotive market is limited because of the uncertainty about the macroeconomic scenario and how the public health situation will evolve, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the availability and prices of raw materials, and the logistics of transportation and sourcing from Asian markets. However, for 2022 S&P Global (IHS) is continuing to forecast 4.7% growth in world car production compared to 2021, with Europe at +10.7%, Nafta at +12.7%, South America at +6.9% and China remaining substantially stable (+0.4%). As for commodity prices, the first six months of 2022 saw further price rises and it is difficult to make forecasts for the second half of the year; the selling prices of Sogefi’s products have been adjusted to factor in these rises and after the further commodity and energy price rises since the start of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, Sogefi’s management is committed to reaching fair agreements with all its customers, as it did in the first half of the year, in order to continue commercial relationships that are sustainable in the long term.

Assuming that there are no factors or circumstances that could make the scenario even more complex than it is at present, the operating results of Sogefi and KOS for the whole year should be at least in line with those of last year.

As for the management of the financial assets of the holding company, given the uncertainty surrounding the geopolitical, macroeconomic and financial scenario, the second part of the year is expected to be just as volatile as the first half was. Despite the prudent management profile adopted, further impairment of the financial instruments in the portfolio cannot be ruled out. 

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 25 July 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 18 and 22 July 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 162,246 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.3986, for a total amount of € 64,674.64.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 190,021,771 treasury shares, equal to 14.88% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 14:45 CEST

Sogefi: results for first half 2022

Revenues at € 760.0 million, up by 12.3% on first half 2021

EBITDA at € 99.8 million, equal to 13.2% of revenues

Net income at € 20.8 million, in line with first half 2021 (€ 21.4 million)

Free Cash Flow positive for € 41.2 million,

higher than in first half 2021 (€ 33.1 million)

Debt lower at € 216.4 million (€ 261.4 million at 30.6.2021)

Raffaella Pallavicini appointed director

Milan, 22 July 2022 – The Board of Directors of Sogefi S.p.A., which met today under the chairmanship of Monica Mondardini, has approved the Semi-Annual Financial Report of the group as of 30 June 2022, as presented by Chief Executive Frédéric Sipahi.

Sogefi, a company of the CIR Group, is one of the main automotive component producers worldwide in three sectors: Air and Cooling, Filtration and Suspensions.

PERFORMANCE OF THE MARKET

The first half of 2022 saw the difficulty in sourcing specific components and raw materials continue (even causing the temporary closure of certain of the principal car manufacturers’ production facilities worldwide) while commodity prices continued to rise. As from March 2022 the effects of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and of the economic and financial sanctions imposed on Russia began to be felt, particularly the decline in world trade and further rises in the prices of energy and raw materials.

Against this backdrop, world car production fell by 1.8% in first half 2022 compared to the first half of 2021.

Europe reported the most critical performance: -7.6% compared to first half 2021; in China and Mercosur production in the first half was broadly in line with that of the first half of 2021 (+0.7% and -0.6% respectively), while NAFTA and India experienced a recovery (+4.7% and +16.4% respectively).

The trend of the market remains uncertain; S&P Global (IHS) expects to see growth in world production of 4.7% for the whole year compared to 2021, with +11.5% in the second half compared to second half 2021, after the -1.8% of the first half.

SUMMARY OF SOGEFI’S PERFORMANCE IN THE FIRST HALF OF 2022

The Group’s consolidated revenues grew by 12.3% compared to the first half of 2021: production volumes were substantially in line with 2021 (a positive performance compared to the market’s -1.8%) and the rise in revenues was due to the evolution of exchange rates and to the adjustment of selling prices to the higher costs of raw materials.

Worthy of note is the positive performance of the After Market segment, which gained market share thanks to its ability to respond adequately to client requirements, despite difficulties in the logistics chain.  

The economic results were positive:

  • Net income came in at € 20.8 million (€ 21.4 million in 2021);
  • Free cash flowwas a positive € 41.2 million (€ 33.1 million in 2021);
  • Net debt (before IFRS 16) declined to € 216.4 million at 30 June 2022, versus € 258.2 million at 31 December 2021.

From the product innovation viewpoint, SOGEFI’S CabinHepa+ cabin filter, which uses HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) media and filters the air mechanically, capturing particles 50 times smaller than a conventional cabin filter, was nominated product of the year 2022 in France. The inauguration took place of the new European E-Mobility Tech Center in Marckolsheim, Eastern France, which is devoted to the research and development of new E-mobility products and is equipped with the largest 3D printer in Europe.

The first half was also positive for commercial activity:

  • The Filtration division was awarded various contracts for the supply of oil filters and air purification filters;
  • The Suspensions division signed contracts in Europe for the supply of coil springs and stabilizer bars and also won a contract for the supply of stabilizer bars to an important Chinese company that is entering the electric vehicle market;
  • The Air and Cooling division signed some important contracts in NAFTA and Europe for the supply of thermal management products and cooling plates for electric mobility and the most important contract ever obtained with a producer of electric commercial vehicles and buses for the production of cooling plates in aluminium soldered using laser technology to regulate the temperature of the battery, integrated cooling modules and regulation and vent valves for the battery.

CONSOLIDATED RESULTS FOR THE FIRST HALF

The revenues of first half 2022 came in at € 756.0 million and were up by 12.3% on those of the same period of 2021.

Production volumes were substantially in line with those of the first half of 2021 and the Group outperformed the market (which declined by 1.8% globally and by 7.6% in Europe).

The trend of exchange rates, particularly the weakness of the euro and the consequent strengthening of the US and Canadian dollars and the Chinese renminbi, led to a rise in consolidated revenues of 2.9 percentage points. The remaining increase in revenues reflects the adjustment of selling prices across the different product lines to factor in the evolution of the cost of raw materials and the components used.   

Performance of revenues by geographical area

The Suspensions business unit reported a rise in revenues of 14.1% (+13.2% at constant exchange rates), with significant growth rates particularly in South America.

The Filtration business unit reported a rise in revenues of 15.3% (+12% at constant exchange rates), thanks to the good performance of the After Market channel in Europe and of business in North America and India.

The Air and Cooling business unit reported a rise in revenues of 6.7% and of 1.1% at constant exchange rates due to the negative performance of the Chinese market and particularly to the lockdowns in some areas in April and May when the pandemic flared up again.

EBITDA came to € 99.8 million, compared to the first half 2021 (€ 108.3 million), recurring EBITDA is stable but some non-recurring factors weighed on the result: particularly higher restructuring costs (€ 4.1 million versus € 1.3 million in first half 2021) and lower non-operating income (€ 3.9 million versus € 9.4 million at 30 June 2021).

EBIT came in at € 40.4 million versus € 47.3 million in 2021.

The Group reported net income of € 20.8 million, in line with that of the first half of 2021, which was € 21.4 million.

Free Cash Flow was a positive € 41.2 million, compared to € 33.1 million in first half 2021, thanks to the positive results and to the management of working capital, the change in which was more favourable in this period compared to that of the first half of 2021, also due to greater use of factoring.

Net debt before IFRS 16 stood at € 216.4 million at 30 June 2022, lower than at the end of 2021 (€ 258.2 million) and at 30 June 2021 (€ 261.4 million). Including the financial payables for rights of use as per IFRS 16, the net financial debt of the Group at 30 June 2022 amounted to € 285.2 million, down from € 327.6 million at 31 December 2021.

At 30 June 2022 the Group had committed credit lines in excess of its requirements for € 302.0 million.

At 30 June 2022 shareholders’ equity, excluding minority interests, stood at € 230.3 million, up from € 187.7 million at 31 December 2021. The increase of € 42.6 million was due mainly to the net income for the period (€ 20.8 million), to currency translation differences and to actuarial gains on the valuation of pension funds.

SIGNIFICANT EVENTS THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE SINCE 30 JUNE 2022

Since the close of the first half of the year there have been no significant events that could have an impact on the economic, patrimonial and financial information given in this report.

IMPACT OF COVID-19 AND THE RUSSIAN-UKRAINIAN CONFLICT ON THE BUSINESS

In 2022, despite the continuation of the pandemic crisis, the effects on the market in which the Company operates have been less severe than those recorded in previous years, as there has been no suspension of industrial or commercial activity except for the lockdowns in certain areas of China in April and May.

However, operational difficulties linked to personnel absences due to infection or contact have been continuing in spite of the fact that Sogefi has maintained all the rules for health and safety in the workplace aimed at reducing the risk of contagion: social distancing, the use of individual protection and measures aimed at limiting the presence of personnel in the workplace by having staff work from home.  

As for the direct impact on Sogefi of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, until March 2022 Sogefi had a commercial business in Russia and exported to Ukraine and Belarus; the total revenues from these activities were not signficant as they accounted for 0.7% of the Group’s revenues in 2021. The businesses in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus were discontinued as from March 2022 and the Russian branch is in the process of being wound up. As a result, in the first half of 2022 Sogefi reported losses in value of the assets held in Russia for an amount of € 1.3 million, while the direct impact on revenues and margins was minimal.

Sogefi, like all of the automotive sector, is feeling the indirect effects of the war and particularly the further hike in energy prices and commodities and the sourcing problems.

Lastly, as a combined effect of the pandemic crisis that is still ongoing and of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict , with a significant impact on important European customers for whom the Russian market was important, demand in Europe has been weak.  

OUTLOOK FOR THE YEAR

Visibility as to the performance of the automotive market in the coming months of 2022 is limited because of the uncertainty about the macroeconomic scenario and how the public health situation will evolve, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the availability and prices of raw materials, and the logistics of transportation and sourcing from Asian markets.   

However, for 2022 S&P Global (IHS) is continuing to forecast 4.7% growth in world car production compared to 2021, with Europe at +10.7%, Nafta at +12.7%, South America at +6.9% and China remaining substantially stable (+0.4%).

As for commodity prices, the first six months of 2022 saw further price rises and it is difficult to make forecasts for the second half of the year. It should be noted that in the first half of 2022 Sogefi’s selling prices were adjusted to take into account the rise in the cost of raw materials recorded in 2021 and at the beginning of 2022. Given the further commodity and energy price rises since the start of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, Sogefi’s management is committed to reaching fair agreements with all its customers, as it did in the first half of the year, in order to continue commercial relationships that are sustainable in the long term.

Assuming that there are no factors that could worsen the macroeconomic and production scenario (a significant tightening of the sanctions imposed on Russia, an extension of the conflict outside of Ukraine, shortages and higher prices of energy and raw materials than current ones, such that could compromise the sustainability of the supply chain, further lockdowns), Sogefi hereby confirms its objective of achieving an operating result for the whole year 2022, excluding non-recurring charges, that is substantially in line with the result of 2021.

RAFFAELLA PALLAVICINI NEW DIRECTOR OF SOGEFI

The General Meeting of the shareholders of Sogefi S.p.A., held today in Milan in an ordinary session, approved an increase in the number of directors of Sogefi from eight to nine and appointed Ms Raffaella Pallavicini as director until the mandate of the current Board of Directors comes to an end, i.e. until the date on which the financial statements for the year 2024 are approved by the Annual General Meeting of the Shareholders. Ms Raffaella Pallavicini’s candidature was put forward by the majority shareholder CIR S.p.A. – Compagnie Industriali Riunite, holder of 55.64% of the voting rights. Her curriculum vitae is available on the website www.sogefigroup.com.

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 18 July 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 11 and 15 July 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 112,377 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4089, for a total amount of € 45,947.67.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 189,859,525 treasury shares, equal to 14.87% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 11 July 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 4 and 8 July 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 334,248 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4077, for a total amount of € 136,259.47.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 189,747,148 treasury shares, equal to 14.86% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 4 July 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 27 June and 1 July 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 384,365 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4086, for a total amount of € 157,051.81.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 189,412,900 treasury shares, equal to 14.83% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 27 June 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 20 and 24 June 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 382,273 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4103, for a total amount of € 156,848.74.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 189,028,535 treasury shares, equal to 14.8% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 20 June 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 13 and 17 June 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 328,656 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4213, for a total amount of € 138,447.02.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 188,646,262 treasury shares, equal to 14.77% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 13 June 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 6 and 10 June 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 236,492 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4493, for a total amount of € 106,255.49.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 188,317,606 treasury shares, equal to 14.74% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 6 June 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 30 May and 3 June 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 479,107 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4537, for a total amount of € 217,365.04.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 188,081,114 treasury shares, equal to 14.73% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 30 May 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 23 and 27 May 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 474,551 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4391, for a total amount of € 208,388.33.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 187,602,007 treasury shares, equal to 14.69% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 23 May 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 16 and 20 May 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 481,407 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4109, for a total amount of € 197,798.20.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 187,127,456 treasury shares, equal to 14.65% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 16 May 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 9 and 13 May 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 448,476 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4093, for a total amount of € 183,571.59.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 186,646,049 treasury shares, equal to 14.61% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 15:44 CEST

Sogefi: calling of an ordinary General Meeting of the Shareholders to increase the number of directors

Milan, 16 May 2022 – The Board of Directors of Sogefi S.p.A., which met today, acknowledged that the current composition of the administrative body – after the votes cast by the Annual General Meeting to appoint the Board for the three years 2022-2024 – needs to be supplemented in order to respect the gender balance required by current regulations. 

In compliance with the supplementary criteria set out in Art. 17 of the Company Bylaws, the Board of Directors thus voted to call a general meeting of the Shareholders in an ordinary session, at the first call on 22 July 2022 at 9.00 a.m. and, if necessary, at a second call on 25 July 2022 at the same time, in order to adopt appropriate measures to i) supplement the Board of Directors, i.e. increasing the number of directors from 8 to 9, ii) appoint a director from the least represented gender and iii) determine the fee for the same.

For further information please refer to the notice of general meeting of the Shareholders which will be published in accordance with applicable law.

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 9 May 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 2 and 6 April 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 243,329 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4121, for a total amount of € 100,276.13.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 186,197,573 treasury shares, equal to 14.58% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 18:00 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 2 May 2022 – Following the resolution of the Board of Directors on 29 April 2022 on the continuation of the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 29 April 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 25 and 29 April 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 823,473 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4064, for a total amount of € 334,641.95.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 185,988,012 treasury shares, equal to 14.56% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 13:13 CEST

CIR: AGM approves Financial Statements for 2021

Milan, 29 April 2022 – The Annual General Meeting of the Shareholders of CIR S.p.A. was held today in Milan in an ordinary session under the chairmanship of Rodolfo De Benedetti.

As per the terms of Art. 106, paragraph 4, of Decree Law no. 18 of 17 March 2020, the Shareholders were able to attend exclusively through the designated representative, appointed in accordance with Art. 135-undecies of D.Lgs. no. 58 of 24 February 1998 (TUF) and identified as Studio Segre S.r.l., to whom proxies/sub-proxies were also assigned under Art. 135-novies of the TUF, in waiver of Art. 135-undecies, paragraph 4, of the same TUF.

Approval of the Financial Statements for 2021

The Shareholders approved CIR’s financial statements for the year 2021. The group closed the year with consolidated revenues of € 1,980.7 million (€ 1,821.8 million in 2020) and net income of € 18.0 million. The parent company CIR S.p.A. reported net income of € 2.1 million.

The Shareholders approved the proposal of the Board of Directors not to distribute any dividends.

Remuneration policy and stock grant plan

The Shareholders approved the first section of the “Report on remuneration policy and compensation paid” and expressed a majority vote in favour of the second section of the same report.

The Meeting also approved the Stock Grant Plan for 2022, aimed at directors and/or executives of the Company and its subsidiaries for a maximum number of 5,000,000 conditional rights, each of which will give the beneficiaries the right to be assigned 1 CIR share free of charge. The shares assigned will be made available from the treasury shares held by the Company. The plan has the aim of aligning the interests of management with the objectives of creating value for the group and its shareholders over a medium-long term time horizon and of encouraging those holding key positions to remain with the group.

Authorization to buy back own shares 

The Shareholders’ Meeting gave the Board of Directors an authorization, valid for a period of 18 months, to buy back a maximum of 76,016,488 own shares, and in any case up to 5.95% of the total number of shares constituting the share capital, at a unit price that must not be more than 15% higher or lower than the benchmark price recorded by the Company’s shares in the stock exchange trading session preceding each individual buyback transaction or preceding the date on which the price is fixed. In the event of purchases made according to the procedures set out in points (i), (iii) and (iv) of the following paragraph and in any case when the purchases are made with orders placed in the regulated market, the price must not be higher than the higher of the price of the last independent transaction and the highest current independent bid price in the same market.

The buyback must take place in the market, in compliance with the terms of Art. 132 of the TUF and with the terms of the law or the regulations in force at the moment of the transaction and more precisely (i) through a public tender offer to buy or exchange shares; (ii) on regulated markets following operating procedures established in the rules for organizing and managing the said markets, which do not allow bids and offers to be matched directly; (iii) through the assignment pro-rata of put options to the shareholders to be assigned within 15 months of the date of the AGM resolution authorizing the same with exercise within 18 months of the same resolution; (iv) through the purchase and sale of derivative instruments traded on regulated markets that involve physical delivery of the underlying shares in compliance with the further provisions contained in Art. 144-bis of the Rules for Issuers issued by Consob, and as per the terms of Articles 5 and 13 of the MAR.

The main reasons why this authorization is being renewed are the following: (a) to fulfil obligations resulting from possible stock option plans or other awards of shares of the Company to employees or members of the Board of Directors of CIR or its subsidiaries, or to fulfil any obligations resulting from debt instruments that are convertible into or exchangeable with equity instruments; (b) to have a portfolio of own shares to use as consideration for any extraordinary transactions, even those involving an exchange of shareholdings, with other parties within the scope of transactions of interest to the Company (a so-called “stock of securities”); (c) to engage in action to support market liquidity, optimize the capital structure and remunerate shareholders in particular market conditions, all within the limits established by current rules and regulations; (d)  to take advantage of opportunities for creating value, as well as investing liquidity efficiently in relation to the market trend; (e) for any other purpose qualified by the competent Authorities as admitted market practice in accordance with applicable European and domestic rules, and with the procedures established therein.

*****

Board of Directors Meeting

The Board of Directors of CIR resolved to continue the share buyback plan launched on 16 March 2022 and which is currently in progress, in accordance with and in execution of the authorization that it has just received from the Shareholders. The new resolution is for the buyback of no more than 76,016,488 own shares (equal to 5.95% of CIR’s share capital) without prejudice to the limit of 20% of the share capital and the other characteristics of the plan which were published on 11 March 2022 and on 15 March 2022.

As of 28 April 2022 CIR owned 185,881,760 treasury shares, representing 14.55% of the shares that constitute the Company’s share capital.

The Board of Directors and the Board of Statutory Auditors also verified that the Members who have declared themselves to be independent do in fact have the requisites to be considered as independent.  

Lastly, in accordance with the AGM resolution on the subject, the Board began implementing Stock Grant Plan 2022 by assigning 4,274,469 rights.

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- 19:00 CEST

Sogefi: AGM approves financial statements for 2021

SOGEFI: AGM APPROVES FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR 2021
BOARD OF DIRECTORS APPOINTED FOR THREE YEARS 2022-2024
MONDARDINI CONFIRMED AS CHAIRMAN AND SIPAHI AS CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Independent directors Patrizia Arienti, Maha Daoudi and Massimiliano Picardi join the Board

Milan, 22 April 2022 – The ordinary Annual General Meeting of the Shareholders of Sogefi S.p.A. was held today under the chairmanship of Monica Mondardini.

Pursuant to Article 106, paragraph 4, of Italian Decree-Law no. 18 of March 17, 2020, shareholders exclusively participated in the Annual General Meeting of the Shareholders through the designated representative appointed pursuant to Article 135-undecies of Italian Legislative Decree no. 58 of February 24, 1998 (TUF) and identified in Studio Segre S.r.l., to which proxies/subproxies pursuant to art. 135-novies of the TUF have also been granted, as an exception to art. 135-undecies, paragraph 4, of the TUF.

Approval of the Financial Statements for 2021

The Shareholders approved the Financial Statements for the year 2021. Sogefi closed the year with consolidated revenues of € 1,320.6 million (€ 1,190.2 million in 2020), EBITDA of € 192.5 million (€ 137.0 million in 2020) and a positive net result of € 2.0 million (loss of € 35.1 million in 2020). The parent company of the group Sogefi S.p.A. reported a profit of € 69.9 million (loss of € 6.2 million in 2020).

The Shareholders approved the proposal put forward by the Board of Directors that no dividends be distributed.

Compensation Policy and Stock Grant Plan

The AGM approved the first section of the Report on Compensation and remuneration paid and expressed a majority vote in favour of the second section of the same Report.

The Shareholders also approved the stock grant plan for 2022 aimed at employees of the Group holding strategically important roles for a maximum of 1,000,000 conditional rights, each of which will give the beneficiaries the right to be assigned free of charge 1 Sogefi share. The shares thus assigned will be made available from the own shares held by the Company. The plan aims to align the interests of management with the objective of creating value for the Group and its Shareholders over a medium-long term time horizon, stimulating the commitment to achieving common objectives at Group level and encouraging those who hold key positions to remain with the Group.

Authorization to buy back own shares

The Annual General Meeting of the Shareholders renewed the proxy to the Board of Directors for a period of 18 months, with power to buy back a maximum of 10 million own shares at a unit price that cannot be more than 15% higher or lower than the benchmark price recorded by the Company’s shares on the trading day preceding each single buyback transaction or preceding the date on which the price is fixed in the event of purchases made in accordance with the procedures stated in points (a), (c) and (d) of the following paragraph, and in any case, when the shares are bought back through orders placed in the regulated market, the price must not be higher than the highest price of the last independent transaction and the highest current independent bid price on the same market.

The buyback must take place in the market, in compliance with the terms of Art. 132 of Italian Leg. Decree no. 58/98 and with the terms of the law and the rules in force at the moment of the transaction and more precisely (a) through a public tender offer to buy or exchange shares; (b) on regulated markets following operating procedures established in the rules for organizing and managing the said markets, which do not allow bids and offers to be matched directly; (c) through the assignment pro-rata of put options to the shareholders to be assigned within 15 months of the date of the AGM resolution authorizing the same with exercise within 18 months of the same resolution; (d) through the purchase and sale of derivative instruments traded on regulated markets that involve physical delivery of the underlying shares in compliance with the further provisions contained in Art. 144-bis of the Rules for Issuers issued by Consob, and as per the terms of Articles 5 and 13 of EU Regulation no. 596/2014.

The main reasons why this authorization is being renewed are the following: (i) to fulfil obligations resulting from possible stock option plans or other awards of shares of the Company to employees or members of the Board of Directors of Sogefi S.p.A. or its subsidiaries, or to fulfil any obligations resulting from debt instruments that are convertible into or exchangeable with equity instruments; (ii) to have a portfolio of own shares that can be used as consideration for any extraordinary transactions, even those involving an exchange of shareholdings, with other parties within the sphere of transactions of interest to the Company (a so-called “stock of shares”); (iii) to engage in action to support market liquidity, optimize capital structure, and remunerate shareholders in particular market situations, all within the limits established by current rules and regulations; (iv) to take advantage of opportunities for creating value, as well as investing liquidity efficiently in relation to the market trend; (v) for any other purpose qualified by the competent Authorities as admitted market practice in accordance with applicable European or domestic rules, and with the procedures established therein.

As of today’s date, the Company is the owner of 1,993,372 own shares, equal to 1.66% of the share capital.

Appointment of the Board of Directors

The Annual General Meeting of the Shareholders appointed Patrizia Arienti, Maha Daoudi, Rodolfo De Benedetti, Mauro Melis, Monica Mondardini, Massimiliano Picardi, Frédéric Sipahi, Christian Georges Streiff as directors for the three-year period 2022-2024.

Seven directors were drawn from the list submitted by the majority shareholder CIR S.p.A. – Compagnie Industriali Riunite, holder of 55.637% of the voting rights, and one director, Massimiliano Picardi, was taken from the list submitted by minority shareholder Navig S.a.s. of Giorgio Zaffaroni, holder of 3.33% of voting rights. The curricula vitae of the directors are available on the website www.sogefigroup.com.

During the Annual General Meeting, Chairman Monica Mondardini and CEO Frédéric Sipahi thanked outgoing board members Patrizia Canziani, Roberta Di Vieto and Ervino Riccobon for their service at the Company.

Board of Directors Meeting

Following the Annual General Meeting of the Shareholders, the Board of Directors confirmed Monica Mondardini as Chairman and Frédéric Sipahi as CEO of the Company.

The Board verified that five directors out of a total of eight were independent. They are Patrizia Arienti, Maha Daoudi, Mauro Melis, Massimiliano Picardi and Christian Georges Streiff.

The Board of Statutory Auditors in its turn verified the presence of the requisites for the independence of its members.

The Board of Directors also defined the composition of the committees: the Appointment and Remuneration Committee is composed of the directors Mauro Melis, Massimiliano Picardi and Christian Georges Streiff, the Control, Risk and Sustainability Committee is composed of Patrizia Arienti, Maha Daoudi and Mauro Melis and the Committee for Related Party Transactions is composed of Patrizia Arienti, Mauro Melis and Massimiliano Picardi. Mauro Melis was appointed lead independent director.

Lastly, the Board, in accordance with the AGM resolution, implemented the 2022 stock grant plan for the first time, granting 995,000 rights.

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- 18:46 CEST

Disclosure regarding the buyback of shares

Milan, 22 April 2022 – Following the announcement made on 15 March 2022 concerning the launch of the treasury shares’ buyback plan based on the authorization granted by the Shareholders’ Meeting on 30 April 2021, and approved by the Board of Directors on 11 March 2022, CIR S.p.A. announces that between 19 and 22 April 2022 it bought back, on the Euronext Milan market, 460,251 shares at an average unitary price of € 0.4126, for a total amount of € 189,906.96.

As of today, CIR S.p.A. is holding a total of 185,164,539 treasury shares, equal to 14.50% of its share capital. The subsidiaries of CIR do not own any shares in the Company.

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- 16:11 CEST

Sogefi: results for first quarter 2022

RESULTS FOR FIRST QUARTER 2022

Revenues at € 381.1 million, up 8% on the first quarter of 2021
Better than market performance

EBITDA margin at 13.1% of turnover, lower than in the first quarter of 2021
(15.4%) due to higher raw material and energy costs

Net income of € 10.7 million
(€ 11.8 million in the first quarter of 2021)

Free Cash Flow positive for € 43.7 million and higher
than the first quarter of 2021 (€ 32.4 million)

Milan, 22 April 2022 – The Board of Directors of Sogefi S.p.A., which met today under the chairmanship of Monica Mondardini, has approved the Interim Financial Report of the Group as of March 31, 2022, presented by Chief Executive Officer Frédéric Sipahi.

Sogefi, a company of the CIR Group, is one of the main global producers of automotive components for three sectors: Air and Cooling, Filtration and Suspensions.

PERFORMANCE OF THE MARKET

In the first few months of the year the difficulties in sourcing specific components continued (which also led to the temporary closure of some factories of the main world manufacturers), as did the shortages of raw materials and the increase in raw material and energy prices. Starting at the end of February, this problematic situation was compounded by the difficulties linked to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the economic and financial sanctions imposed on Russia by Europe, the United States and other countries around the world, which led to a reduction in world trade and a further rise in raw material and energy prices.

Against this backdrop, in the first quarter of 2022, global automobile production was down 4.5% compared to 2021; in March, the decline became more pronounced at -11.4%. Europe performed the worst, with car production at -17% compared to the first quarter of 2021 (-24.3% in March); production also fell in NAFTA and Mercosur (-1.8% and -13.3% respectively), while China showed a positive trend (+6.1%).

Despite the above, IHS maintains a forecast for global manufacturing growth of 4.4% in 2022.

SOGEFI’S KEY RESULTS IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2022

The Group revenues grew by 8% compared to 2021: production volumes remained substantially stable (compared to a market at -4.5%) and sales prices were adjusted to take into account the increases in raw material costs (particularly steels) recorded over the last 12 months.

The economic results were positive:
– net income was € 10.7 million (€ 11.8 million in 2021);
– positive free cash flow was € 43.7 million (€ 32.4 million in 2021);
– net debt before IFRS 16 at March 31, 2022 was € 213.4 million, down from € 258.2 million at December 31, 2021 and € 261.1 million at the end of March 2021.

The first quarter of 2022 was also positive for business activity.

During the quarter, the SOGEFI CabinHepa+ cabin filter, which uses HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) media and filters mechanically, capturing particles 50 times smaller than a conventional cabin filter, won the 2022 Product of the Year award in France. The new European E-Mobility Tech Center, based in eastern France, was also inaugurated. It is dedicated to research and development of new E-mobility products and equipped with Europe’s largest 3D printer.

The Air and Cooling division entered into major contracts in NAFTA to supply thermal management products and cooling plates for electric mobility. In particular, a new contract was signed, the largest electric mobility contract ever entered into by Sogefi, with a manufacturer of electric commercial vehicles, for the production of aluminum cooling plates welded with laser technology to control the temperature of the battery. Filtration obtained a significant number of contracts for the supply of oil filters and air purification filters. Suspensions obtained contracts in Europe for coil springs and stabilizer bars, most of which will be manufactured in Romania.

REVENUES

In the first quarter of 2022, Sogefi’s revenues amounted to € 381.1 million, up 8% on the corresponding period of 2021 (€ 352.8 million).

Turnover grew in all geographies: +4.1% in Europe, +13.5% in North America, +31.9% in South America and +7.6% in Asia. Sogefi outperformed the market in all areas except China, where in the same period of the previous year Sogefi had already reported strong growth in revenues thanks to the launch of new programs.

By Business Unit, Suspensions reported revenues up 9.5%, with a particularly significant rate of increase in South America. Filtration reported revenues up 11.6%, with strong performance from the Aftermarket in Europe and the North American operations. The Air and Cooling division grew by 2.7% due to exchange rates, while at constant exchange rates it contracted slightly (-1.7%).

OPERATING RESULT AND NET RESULT

EBITDA amounted to € 50.0 million compared with € 54.2 million in the first quarter of 2021; gross profitability (EBITDA / Revenue %) fell to 13.1%, from 15.4% in the first quarter of 2021. This reflects a decline in contribution margin to 28%, compared to 30.7% in the first quarter of 2021, due to higher material and energy costs. In contrast, fixed costs as a percentage of revenue are down from 16.2% (in the same period of 2021) to 14.6%.

EBIT amounted to € 21.2 million, compared with € 25.4 million in 2021.

Financial expenses, at € 4.5 million, were down on those in the first quarter of 2021 (€ 5.8 million) thanks to the reduction in debt and the cost of debt; tax expenses were essentially stable at € 5.9 million (€ 6.0 million in 2021).

The net result was a positive € 10.7 million (€ 11.8 million in the first quarter of 2021).

DEBT AND EQUITY

The Free Cash Flow was positive for € 43.7 million versus € 32.4 million in Q1 2021. The Free Cash Flow reflects the positive results and specific actions on working capital implemented by the Group.

Net debt before IFRS16 stood at € 213.4 million at March 31, 2022, down from the end of 2021 (€ 258.2 million) and from March 31, 2021 (€ 261.1 million).
Including financial payables for rights of use as per IFRS 16, net debt at March 31, 2022 stood at € 281.8 million, down from € 327.6 at December 31, 2021.

As of March 31, 2022, the Group has committed credit lines in excess of requirements of € 321 million.

At March 31, 2022, Shareholders’ equity, excluding minority interests, amounted to € 205.8 million versus € 187.7 million at December 31, 2021.

IMPACTS OF COVID-19 AND RUSSIAN-UKRAINIAN CONFLICT ON THE BUSINESS

In 2022, despite the continuing pandemic crisis, the effects on the market in which the Company operates were less severe than those suffered in the previous two years. However, demand remains weak, particularly in Europe and NAFTA, and operational challenges related to uneven production levels and staff absences caused by the pandemic continue. The current lockdown in some areas of China could have negative impacts both directly, on manufacturing activities in China, and indirectly, on raw materials imported from the country.

In 2022, the Sogefi Group continued to apply all the rules for health and safety in the workplace aimed at reducing the risk of contagion, namely social distancing, the use of individual protective equipment and measures to limit the presence of personnel in the workplace, i.e. working from home.

Regarding the impact of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, it should be pointed out that Sogefi has a very limited direct presence in the countries involved: in 2021 revenues earned in these countries accounted for 0.7% of Sogefi’s total revenues. Sales to Russia, Ukraine and Belarus have been discontinued since March. As a result, in the first quarter of 2022, Sogefi recorded impairment losses of € 1.1 million on assets held in Russia. With the exception of these losses, the impact on revenues and margins was not significant.

Regarding the indirect impact of the conflict, Sogefi, like the whole automotive sector, could suffer consequences on production volumes linked to the closure of the factories of the main world manufacturers present in Russia (such as, for example, Renault) and in general the repercussions of a further rise in the prices of raw materials and of increased supply difficulties.

OUTLOOK FOR THE YEAR

Visibility as to the market trend in the next few months of 2022 remains low. The uncertainties related to the evolution of the pandemic, availability and prices of raw materials, transportation and supply logistics from Asian markets, and thus the recovery of the automotive sector have been amplified by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.

For 2022, however, IHS maintains a forecast of global manufacturing volumes recovering 4.4% from 2021, with Europe at +11.3%, NAFTA at +13%, South America at +9.6% and China essentially breaking even (-0.9%).

With regard to commodity prices, the early months of 2022 have seen a further rise and it is difficult to make forecasts for 2022. It should be noted that in the first quarter of 2022, sales prices were adjusted to reflect the increase in raw material costs recorded in 2021. Faced with a further rise in the cost of raw materials and energy following the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, Sogefi’s management is committed to seeking fair agreements with all its customers, as it did in the first quarter, in order to continue to have sustainable long-term business relationships.

Assuming that there are no further factors causing a serious deterioration in the macro-economic and production scenario (significant tightening of sanctions against Russia, extension of the conflict outside Ukraine, shortages and price rises in energy and raw materials compared to the current ones that would compromise the sustainability of the supply chain), Sogefi confirms its target of achieving operating results for the whole of 2022, excluding non-recurring costs, substantially in line with the result recorded in 2021.

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