paragon Automotive's Rapid Growth Continues

paragon Automotive's Rapid Growth Continues

- Further positive development of business situation after strong second half of 2020

- Revenue in first quarter around 33% over prior year; EBITDA margin increases to 15%

- Current customer orders around 8% higher than planned

- Prof. Dr. Lutz Eckstein steps down as Supervisory Board Chairman following appointment to Board of Academic Advisers to the Federal Minister of Transport and Digital Infrastructure - Prof. Dr. Iris Gräßler standing by as successor

Delbrück, Germany, April 27, 2021 - Based on preliminary figures for the Automotive business, paragon [ISIN DE0005558696] has exceeded its own expectations with an increase in revenue of 33% in the first quarter of 2021 compared with the same period in the previous year. From January to March, the Tier 1 supplier generated revenue of € 39.2 million with its automotive customers. The EBITDA margin amounts to 15.4%, which is at the upper end of the forecast range. With a 29% increase in revenue, paragon Automotive has thus clearly exceeded the first quarter of 2019, the year prior to the coronavirus. Based on the good development in customer orders, the Management also expects the second quarter to significantly surpass the reference period from 2019.

"After our company had the best second half-year in its history in 2020, the paragon Automotive rally is continuing to accelerate," says Klaus Dieter Frers, founder and CEO of paragon.

As the company already reported based on preliminary figures, revenue in the fourth quarter of 2020 developed better than initially forecast. Accordingly, paragon's automotive business exceeded its expectations for 2020 as a whole, with revenue of around € 127 million. The strong development was accompanied by a significantly higher EBITDA margin in the second half of the year, which came to 13.5%. The margin for the year as a whole was 10.8%, which takes into account the coronavirus-related plant closures in the spring.

The Management considers the developments in the second half of 2020 and the outlook for the current fiscal year to be a strong sign that the measures taken to increase earnings and cost efficiency are as effective as desired and, most importantly, are sustainable. Moreover, the revenue level demonstrates paragon's potential in the automotive business.

"The quick and impressive recovery of our business following the coronavirus slump has given fresh impetus to paragon's success story. Our operational performance is more strongly protected against burdensome factors than ever. The further increase in the first quarter is further evidence of our capability," emphasizes Dr. Matthias Schöllmann, Managing Director of Automotive at paragon.

A change in paragon's Supervisory Board is looming. Prof. Dr. Lutz Eckstein told the Management that he regrets he must leave the office of Supervisory Board Chairman prematurely as of this year's Annual General Meeting. The reason for his departure is his appointment to the Board of Academic Advisers to the Federal Minister of Transport and Digital Infrastructure, a post that requires a great deal of time as well as neutrality. Prof. Dr.-Ing. Iris Gräßler will be proposed as his successor at the Annual General Meeting. The professor of product creation has held a chair at the Heinz Nixdorf Institute at the University of Paderborn since 2013. Prior to that, she held a number of management positions at Robert Bosch GmbH from 2000-2013 and was responsible for product creation, production systems and change management, among other things. Prof. Gräßler received her doctorate in 1999 and completed her postdoctoral qualification in 2003 at the Chair of Production Engineering, Laboratory of Machine Tools at RWTH Aachen.

"Of course we respect Prof. Eckstein's decision. We owe him our great thanks for his service as Supervisory Board Chairman of paragon for the last seven years. At the same time, my Management colleague Dr. Schöllmann and I are delighted that Prof. Dr. Gräßler is prepared to contribute her proven expertise to the development of paragon on its Supervisory Board in the coming years," says Klaus Dieter Frers.

In the current fiscal year, paragon Automotive expects to generate around € 145 million in revenue. Compared with the data from industry-specific, renowned market research institutes on the development of the automotive market in 2021, the company expects to see 4.9% higher growth than the market as a whole. The Management also reaffirms its expectations of an EBITDA margin of 12-15% and free cash flow of around € 12 million for 2021 as a whole. The company does not expect material shortages to have a major impact on performance; currently known shortages fall below the planned tolerance levels.

After consultation with the auditor, the company has already published the key figures of the completed financial statements of paragon Automotive for fiscal year 2020 on March 30, 2021. The communicated figures can still be confirmed at € 127.2 million and an EBITDA margin of 10.8%. Due to delays in the audit of the consolidated financial statements of the financial investment Voltabox AG, the publication of the consolidated financial statements of paragon GmbH & Co. KGaA will be postponed. The company will publish the consolidated financial statements immediately after the release of the annual financial report of Voltabox AG. The same applies to an update of the financial calendar. Further information about paragon GmbH & Co. KGaA can be found at www.paragon.ag.

Profile: paragon GmbH & Co. KGaA

paragon GmbH & Co. KGaA (ISIN DE0005558696), which is listed in the regulated market (Prime Standard) of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, develops, produces and distributes forward-looking solutions in the field of automotive electronics, body kinematics and e-mobility. As a market-leading direct supplier to the automotive industry, the company's portfolio includes the Electronics operating segment's innovative air-quality management, state-of-the-art display systems and connectivity solutions, and high-end acoustic systems. In the Mechanics operating segment, paragon develops and produces active mobile aerodynamic systems. In addition, the Group holds a stake in Voltabox AG (ISIN DE000A2E4LE9), a subsidiary that is also listed on the regulated market (Prime Standard) of Deutsche Börse AG in Frankfurt a.M. and which is active in the electromobility segment with cutting-edge lithium-ion battery systems for industrial use developed inhouse. In the rapidly growing automotive market for battery systems and power electronics, paragon will operate on its own in the future.

In addition to the company headquarters in Delbrück (North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany), paragon GmbH & Co. KGaA and its subsidiaries operate sites in Suhl (Thuringia, Germany), Landsberg am Lech, Neu-Ulm and Nuremberg (Bavaria, Germany), St. Georgen (Baden-Württemberg, Germany), Limbach (Saarland, Germany), Aachen (North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany) as well as in Kunshan (China), Bangalore (India), Oroslavje (Croatia) and Austin (Texas, USA).

Additional information about paragon can be found at www.paragon.ag.

Capital Market & Press Contact

paragon GmbH & Co. KGaA

Stefan Westemeyer
Bösendamm 11
33129 Delbrück, Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 52 50 - 97 62-141
Fax: +49 (0) 52 50 - 97 62-63
Email: investor@paragon.ag