Vestas' operating profit for the third quarter of 2013 exceeds expectations

Vestas, a manufacturer of wind turbines, reported a third-quarter operating result above expectations on Tuesday. This was driven by a good performance in its onshore operations.

The stronger-than-expected result suggests Vestas is successfully executing a turnaround after years of losses, managing to pass on higher costs to customers and improve profitability even as the wider wind industry faces severe headwinds.

Henrik Andersen, CEO of the company, said that "the world is still impacted by geopolitical uncertainties, which creates unprecedented challenges but also shows why wind energy remains critical to building affordable and secure energy systems."

The Danish company announced a 77% increase in operating profit from July to September before one-offs, which amounted to 416 millions euros ($485.14million), above the 305million euros analysts expected in a company-compiled agreement.

Vestas announced that it would launch a 150 million euro share-buyback program.

It now expects to sell between 18.5 billion and 19.5 billion euros in 2025, as opposed to the previous forecast of 18 billion to 20 billion euros. The company now expects to achieve an operating profit margin of between 5% to 6% in 2025, as opposed to the previous forecast between 4% and 7%.

(source: Reuters)