13
April
2018
|
12:47
Europe/Amsterdam

Covestro significantly raises dividend

Annual General Meeting in Bonn:

Summary

• Patrick Thomas hands over CEO position to Dr. Markus Steilemann on June 1.

Materials manufacturer Covestro has significantly raised its dividend for the past fiscal year: shareholders receive EUR 2.20 per share, equivalent to a 63 percent rise over the previous year (EUR 1.35). This was approved by the Annual General Meeting in Bonn on Friday.

CEO Patrick Thomas drew a positive conclusion of the 2017 results: "We have once again achieved record results and demonstrated that our success is sustainable. This has allowed us to be able to again distribute an attractive dividend to our shareholders." Thomas believes Covestro is optimally positioned to continue this positive trend and take advantage of stable growth in the main customer industries.

Farewell for Patrick Thomas - debut for Dr. Thomas Toepfer

For two Board of Management members, the Annual General Meeting was a special day: CFO Dr. Thomas Toepfer had his first public appearance since he joined Covestro on April 1, whereas Patrick Thomas acted in his capacity as CEO of Covestro at an Annual General Meeting for the last time. Patrick Thomas' contract ends by amicable agreement on May 31, 2018. He has served as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Covestro and its predecessor company Bayer MaterialScience since 2007. As was announced in May 2017, Dr. Markus Steilemann, currently serving as Chief Commercial Officer, will take over as CEO.

"Since going public in 2015, we have achieved an outstanding performance and created extraordinary value for our shareholders," emphasized Thomas. He points to Covestro's recent inclusion in the DAX, Germany's key leading index, as a further milestone in the company's history. "I would like to thank all employees who have made this success possible over the last few years."

Annual General Meeting voting results on the individual agenda items:

Agenda item 2: Resolution on the use of the distributable profit As proposed by the Board of Management and Supervisory Board, the Annual General Meeting resolved to use the distributable profit of EUR 438,900,000 for fiscal 2017 reported in the annual financial statements to distribute EUR 435,582,945.60 as a dividend to shareholders and to carry the remainder of EUR 3,317,054.40 forward to new account. This corresponds to a dividend of EUR 2.20 per no-par value share carrying dividend rights for 2017.

Agenda items 3 and 4: Ratification of the actions of the Board of Management and Supervisory Board The actions of the members of the Board of Management and Supervisory Board who held office in fiscal year 2017 were ratified.

Agenda item 5: Election of the auditors of the financial statements The Annual General Meeting voted to accept the proposal of the Supervisory Board that KPMG AG Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft, Düsseldorf, Germany, be elected as auditor for fiscal 2018.

You will find more information on the Annual General Meeting at: covestro.com/en/investors/annual-general-meeting

Boilerplate

About Covestro:

With 2017 sales of EUR 14.1 billion, Covestro is among the world's largest polymer companies. Business activities are focused on the manufacture of high-tech polymer materials and the development of innovative solutions for products used in many areas of daily life. The main segments served are the automotive, construction, wood processing and furniture, and electrical and electronics industries. Other sectors include sports and leisure, cosmetics, health and the chemical industry itself. Covestro has 30 production sites worldwide and employs approximately 16,200 people (calculated as full-time equivalents) at the end of 2017.

Forward-looking statements

This news release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Covestro AG. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Covestro's public reports which are available at www.covestro.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.