Heliad portfolio continues to perform positively since the first half-year


Heliad Equity Partners GmbH & Co. KGaA / Miscellaneous
17.09.2009 

Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by
DGAP - a company of EquityStory AG.
The issuer / publisher is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.


++ Heliad portfolio continues to perform positively since the first    half-year
++ Focus on service sector provides stability during the crisis ++ Two portfolio companies identified as winners that mastered the crisis
Heliad Equity Partners GmbH & Co. KGaA (ISIN: DE000A0L1NN5/ WKN: A0L 1NN) has provided an update on corporate development and the performance of several portfolio companies in its newsletter.

The Heliad portfolio has continued to show stable performance over the last two months due to its investment focus on special services. As confirmed in recent comments by Deutsche Bank Research , economic crises like the current one affect service companies less than industrial companies. This is because the basic consumption needs of the domestic population generate a large portion of the sales in the services sector. These are less dependent on the economy than global investment expenditures, which generate a large portion of industrial sales and include in particular investments made by foreign companies.

The highlights of the portfolio are: 

++ assona

assona, a supplier of specialty insurance for mobile and stationary electronic equipment, continues to develop its distribution channels. Work is proceeding well with two new distribution partners, EURONICS and Technikdirekt, which began their partnership with the company in the first half of 2009. The company also added two other leading distributors in the information and telecommunications technology sector, UBM and ENO telecom. In August, assona announced that RINGFOTO, Europe's largest association of photography dealers, had become one of its partners. The RINGFOTO Group has close to 1,750 members with more than 2,300 sales offices. This will enable the customers of the expert photography dealers in the RINGFOTO association, which includes PHOTO PORST, to purchase insurance coverage when buying digital cameras, camcorders and other electronic equipment in the future.

++ Unicorn

Unicorn provides cash and valuables transport and a full range of services related to cash transport. After increasing its sales in the first half of 2009 by more than 15% over the same period in the previous year, Unicorn continues to provide positive performance in the third quarter. The full range of services and high quality offered by Unicorn allowed the company to attract new customers, and it is currently in intense negotiations with a number of other potential customers. Unicorn is portrayed as a successful example of the buy-and-build strategy in the latest issue of the 'Unternehmeredition' magazine on the topic of private equity.
++ RT Reprotechnik

RT Reprotechnik, a Leipzig-based reprographic services company, also continues along a growth path. In early July, it opened a new branch office in Stuttgart-Vaihingen and also added outsourcing to its range of services, offering large organisations the services often provided by very small in-house copy and printing offices. At the end of May, RT also acquired Fabidoo (www.fabidoo.de), a supplier of personalisable mini-figures and USB sticks. In addition, RT Reprotechnik received the Oskar-Patzelt foundation's renowned 'Small and Medium-sized Company Grand Prize' last week (Großen Preis des Mittelstandes). The company was awarded the prize for its innovative services and exemplary commitment to its employees, customers and the region.

++ time:matters  

time:matters specialises in emergency logistics and is receiving particular benefit from this niche position at the present time. Its forecast sales of EUR 60 million for 2009 are just slightly below the level of the previous year. New partnerships with the Polish airline company LOT and the Philippine airline company Cebu Pacific provide broad transport networks that time:matters can use for its same-day deliveries (same-day services). As a result, time:matters and another portfolio company, Real Time Technology, whose sales increased by 15% in the first half of 2009, were identified as 'winners', who mastered the crisis, in an article in the latest issue of 'Markt & Mittelstand' .

Based on its solid liquidity position and good deal flow, Heliad expects it will be able to conclude one or two new investments in the remaining months of this year.

The complete newsletter is available for download: http://www.heliad.com/investor-relations-1/publications/newsletter
++ About Heliad

Heliad is a publicly listed investment company which invests in high-growth companies in German-speaking countries. Heliad relies in this respect on established, owner-managed business models with sales of between EUR 10 million and EUR 100 million and a focus on service providers ('asset-light' focus).

With this investment focus and its buy-and-build strategy, Heliad is positioned in the attractive niche between venture capital and traditional buyouts. With around 4,900 employees, the 13 companies currently in Heliad's portfolio generate combined sales of more than EUR 650 million. Further information about the company can be found at www.heliad.com.

Contact:
Heliad Equity Partners GmbH & Co. KGaA
Thomas Kunder
Chief Financial Officer
Phone: +49 69 71 91 59 65 39
E-Mail: investor-relations@heliad.com




17.09.2009  Financial News transmitted by DGAP


 
Language:     English
Company: Heliad Equity Partners GmbH & Co. KGaA               Grüneburgweg 18
              60322 Frankfurt am Main
              Deutschland
Phone:        +49 69 71 91 59 65 0
Fax:          +49 69 71 91 59 65 11
E-mail:       info@heliad.com
Internet:     www.heliad.com
ISIN:         DE000A0L1NN5
WKN:          A0L1NN
Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr               in Berlin, München, Stuttgart
 
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