ABB delivers growth in fourth quarter

Solid transformation progress in 2016

ZURICH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fourth quarter highlights

• 3%1 orders growth driven by large contract awards
• 9% orders growth in the United States and China
• Revenues up 1%
• Power Grids strong growth in orders (up 15%) and revenues (up 4%); Op EBITA margin2 increased to 10.4%
• Operational EBITA margin 11.7% impacted by default of a large distributor in Turkey and Egyptian currency losses
• Net Income $489 mn versus $204 mn in Q4 2015

Full year 2016 highlights

• Operational EBITA margin up 50 bps to 12.4%
• Operational earnings per share2 up 4%
• Orders -5% and revenues -1%
• Successful launch of ABB AbilityTM – integrating and expanding digital offering
• Cash return on invested capital up 70 bps to 14.1%; free cash flow up 5%
• Cost savings and working capital programs progressing
• 8th consecutive dividend increase to CHF0.76 per share proposed

“We delivered growth in the fourth quarter, driven by the strong performance of Power Grids, in a continued tough market,” said CEO Ulrich Spiesshofer. “Our customers are excited about ABB Ability, which bundles our leading offering as a digital champion in our industry. With the related orders already received, and significant interest, we are building growth momentum as we implement Next Level Stage 3,” he said. “The underlying performance improvement momentum continued and was stronger than the numbers we are reporting if you consider the one-off events that impacted us during the quarter.”

“In 2016, we made significant progress transforming ABB into a more customer focused, leaner, digital technology leader,” Spiesshofer said. “We delivered margin accretion through our continued focus on productivity and cost. Our working capital program, strong cash generation and disciplined capital allocation reflect the new cash culture of ABB. We are delivering on our commitment to attractive shareholder returns.”

Key Figures
									CHANGE												CHANGE
($ in millions, unless otherwise indicated)			Q4 2016			Q4 2015			US$			Comparable1			FY 2016			FY 2015			US$			Comparable1
Orders			8,277			8,262			0%			+3%			33,379			36,429			-8%			-5%
Revenues			8,993			9,242			-3%			+1%			33,828			35,481			-5%			-1%
Operational EBITA1			1,057			1,101			-4%			-2%3			4,191			4,209			0%			+2%3
as % of operational revenues			11.7%			11.9%			-0.2pts						12.4%			11.9%			+0.5pts
Net income			489			204			+140%						1,963			1,933			+2%
Basic EPS ($)			0.23			0.09			+147%4						0.91			0.87			+5%4
Operational EPS2 ($)			0.33			0.35			-5%4			-3%4			1.29			1.26			+3%4			+4%4
Cash flow from operating activities			1,519			1,994			-24%						3,934			3,818			+3%
Free cash flow															3,156			3,019			+5%
Cash return on invested capital (CROI)															14.1%			13.4%			+0.7pts