Dräger's Annual General Meeting approves stable dividend for fiscal year 2022

Lübeck—Drägerwerk AG & Co. KGaA held its Annual General Meeting 2023 today. All resolutions on the agenda items were passed with a vast majority. In total, 45.7 percent of the share capital was represented (2022: 46.5 percent).

Dividend
Among the agenda items was the appropriation of net earnings. The shareholders approved the joint proposal of the Supervisory Board and the Executive Board to distribute a dividend of EUR 0.13 per common share and EUR 0.19 per preferred share for fiscal year 2022, unchanged from fiscal year 2021.

“We would like to express our sincere thanks to our shareholders for their trust,” said Stefan Dräger, Chairman of the Executive Board of Drägerwerk Verwaltungs AG. “2022 was a challenging and ultimately disappointing fiscal year. Due to the operating loss, we have decided not to increase the dividend. However, as soon as our company is profitable again, we will do so.”

Return to growth and profitability
In the course of his speech, the Executive Board explained the business development and confirmed the outlook for the current full year while also clarifying how the Company intends to grow and become profitable again.

“With our significant increase in net sales and positive earnings in the first quarter, we have laid the foundation for returning to growth and profitability in 2023,” said Stefan Dräger. “Our markets are intact, so we will continue to benefit from good demand this year. In addition, we expect our delivery capability to improve further, and we will offset the negative effects of high inflation with further price increases. In addition, we are focusing on optimizing our free cash flow and strengthening cost awareness in our company.”

First attendance event in three years
The 2023 Annual General Meeting was held in presence for the first time in three years. Around 200 guests attended the event at the Lübeck Music and Congress Hall. From 2019 to 2021, the Annual General Meeting had been held purely virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Dräger plans to continue holding the Annual General Meeting in person in the future.

The voting results and all other relevant documents relating to the Annual General Meeting are available on the following website: https://www.draeger.com/en-us_us/Investor-Relations/Annual-Shareholders-Meeting.

Disclaimer
This press release contains statements on the future development of Dräger Group. These forward-looking statements are based on the current expectations, presumptions, and forecasts of the Executive Board as well as the information available to date. No guarantee or liability for the occurrence of the future developments and results specified can be assumed in respect of such forward-looking statements. Rather, the future developments and results are dependent on a number of factors. They entail various risks and contingencies beyond the company’s control and are based on assumptions which could prove to be incorrect. Dräger does not assume any responsibility for updating the forward-looking statements contained in this report. This does not infringe any legal stipulations on the adjustment of forecasts. Please go to Investor Relations/Definitions of financial indicators at www.draeger.com for information on alternative performance measures used.