Securitas AB Interim Report January–March 2009

COMMENTS FROM THE PRESIDENT AND CEO

The present global recession can not be recognized nor predicted by using recent history as a pattern of reference. In this economic environment not even Securitas is recession proof but still reasonably resistant, achieving an organic sales growth in the first quarter of 1 percent (7), which we estimate to be in line with the security market development. A number of our customers are facing increasing cost cutting demands fueled by the global recession. We consider it to be crucial to support our customers in optimizing their total spending in security services and to be creative and ¬proactive in finding the most cost efficient security solutions. We also aim to defend the profitability in our contract portfolio.

The organic sales growth in Security Services North America in the first quarter was –2 percent. Adjusting for the leap day in February last year, the organic sales growth would have been close to zero, which is only marginally lower than the fourth quarter of 2008. The recession generates increased opportunities for acquisitions in North America, and in the first quarter we acquired two competitors. We foresee further opportunities, which we intend to exploit selectively as they occur. The organic sales growth during the first quarter in Security Services Europe declined to 2 percent due to negative organic sales growth in some major markets caused by reductions in existing contracts and lower extra sales. Mobile and Monitoring maintained good organic sales growth, achieving 5 percent in the quarter (8). In all business segments the price increases were approximately on par with wage cost development during the period.

The operating result improved to MSEK 872 (697) in the first quarter of the year, primarily supported by the weaker Swedish krona but also by a positive real change of 2 percent. The income before taxes improved 4 percent in real terms (6). The operating margin in the Group was 5.3 percent (5.4). In Security Services North America, the positive trend of portfolio refinement and improving the operating margin during the last two years continued, achieving 5.4 percent in the first quarter compared to 5.2 percent in the same period last year. In Security Services Europe the operating margin declined from 5.2 percent to 5.1 percent in the respective periods, due to increased bad debts, lower extra sales and investments in ¬security training, expertise and security solutions. In Mobile and Monitoring, the operating margin improved in the first quarter as sales investments gradually have been optimized.

Alf Göransson
President and Chief Executive Officer

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Alf Göransson, President and CEO,
+46 10 470 3000
Gisela Lindstrand, Senior Vice President
Corporate Communications and Public Affairs,
+46 10 470 3011
Micaela Sjökvist, Head of Investor Relations,
+46 10 470 3013

INFORMATION MEETING
An information meeting will be held on May 7, 2009, at 9.30 a.m. CET.
The information meeting will take place at Securitas’ head office, Lindhagensplan 70, Stockholm.

To follow the information meeting via telephone (and participate in Q&A session), please register via the link https://eventreg1.conferencing.com/webportal3/reg.html?Acc=589833&Conf=165885
and follow instructions, or call +44 (0)20 7162 0025 or +46 (0) 8 505 201 10.

The meeting will be webcasted at www.securitas.com/webcasts

A recorded version of the web cast will be available on www.securitas.com/webcasts after the information meeting and a telephone recorded version of the information meeting will be available until midnight on May 21 on: +44 (0)20 7031 4064 and +46 (0)8 505 203 33, access code: 832398.

Securitas AB discloses the information provided herein pursuant to the Securities Markets Act and/or the Financial Instruments Trading Act. The information was submitted for publication
at 8.00 a.m. (CET) on Thursday, May 7, 2009.

Available documents

• wkr0003.pdf (369 kb)