Information from YACHT that Hanse will shortly go public has been confirmed. Today the boat builders from Greifswald officially announced that they will be the first German yacht manufacturer to aim for a listing in Frankfurt at the beginning of March.
With the announcement, founder and majority shareholder Michael Schmidt is completing his long-cherished expansion plan. The proceeds from the sale of shares are intended to provide the innovative company with fresh capital for expansion and company acquisitions.
The aim is to continue to grow and expand our position as one of the world's largest manufacturers of ocean-going sailing yachts. Michael Schmidt, founder and CEO of HanseYachts AG, said: "We started as a craft business in 1990 and are now one of the world's five largest manufacturers of ocean-going series sailing yachts."
In the 2005/2006 financial year (July 31, 2006) HanseYachts was able to increase its turnover by around 57 percent to 66.3 million euros (previous year: 42.3 million euros). Earnings before taxes rose by 144 percent to 6.1 million euros (previous year: 2.5 million euros).
A total of 585 sailing yachts were produced in the 2005/2006 financial year. At the end of 2006, the HanseYachts Group had over 400 employees. On average, sales have increased by over 40 percent per year since the 1998/1999 financial year. This makes HanseYachts one of the fastest growing yacht builders in Europe.
Michael Schmidt
The basis of success is the development of a new, clear design language. As so-called "cross-over" yachts, Hanse models meet both the comfort requirements placed on cruising boats and the performance requirements placed on sports yachts. The HanseYachts Group currently builds sailing boats in the size range from 9.45 m to 19.20 m (31 to 63 feet). It thus covers the largest part of the spectrum relevant for cruising yachts.
With the acquisition of a 51% stake in the Norwegian company Fjord Boats AS, motor boats have also been manufactured in Greifswald since March 2006. At the boat show in Düsseldorf, Fjord Boats presented the Fjord 40 Open, the first motor yacht model developed by the HanseYachts Group. “We intend to develop Fjord into a second mainstay of the group,” said Michael Schmidt.
The Hamburg bank M. M. Warburg & CO accompanies the company as consortium leader. The Landesbank Baden-Württemberg also belongs to the issuing consortium. Approval of the securities prospectus is expected on February 23, 2007. The initial listing should take place in the first half of March.