“Through acquisitions and start ups, Securitas is now present in 45 countries and we intend to strengthen our position in the countries we are, but also continue to expand geographically in order to serve our global customers, with the target to be present in approximately 60 countries within three years.” Said Alf Göransson when commenting on Securitas annual financial report for the period January to December 2010.
“The security services market is recovering, even though the development in a few countries in Europe remains stagnant. In the fourth quarter organic sales growth was 4 percent. Including acquisitions, the real sales growth was 10 percent in the final quarter of 2010.
“In 2010 the real improvement in operating income continued and reached 6 percent. The operating margin improved compared to previous year, in spite of a few major acquisitions diluting the margin during the latter part of 2010.
“During 2010 we have made 15 major acquisitions, with total annual sales of approximately MSEK 4,100 and 19,500 employees. Among others, the acquisition of Reliance in the United Kingdom was closed in the fourth quarter. The agreement to acquire Chubb in the United Kingdom was recently signed, subject to customary closing conditions and approval from the United Kingdom Office of Fair Trading. Favourable acquisition opportunities continue to present themselves in both mature and new markets and we intend to remain active and selectively take advantage of such opportunities as they arise.” Concluded Alf Göransson
Headline figures for the period January to December 2010 include:
Total sales £5.9 billion
Organic sales growth 1 percent
Operating margin 6.1 percent