Swatch says net profit up 26% to 1.6 bn Swiss francs
The world's biggest watch-making group Swatch said today that its net profit soared 26 per cent last year, beating market expectations and boosting its share price.
Swatch, most known for its brightly coloured plastic-cased watches saw its net profit balloon to 1.6 billion Swiss francs (1.3 billion euros, USD 1.76 billion).
Hailing "a high level of capacity utilisation, innovative production methods and traditionally strong cost controls," the group also said its operating profit swelled nearly 23 percent year-on-year to 1.98 billion Swiss francs.
Analysts surveyed by Swiss financial news agency AWP had expected a more modest increase in the watchmaker's net profit to 1.4 billion francs on an operating profit of 1.8 billion francs.
Following the news, the price of shares in the watchmaker surged 2.5 per cent to 530.50 Swiss francs in late morning trading on a Swiss stock exchange up 0.25 per cent.
Earlier, Swatch, which often publishes parts of its results in advance, had reported that its 2012 sales rose by 14 percent to 8.1 billion francs. "Swatch Group convinced with a strong performance," Bank Sarasin analyst Patrick Hasenboehler said in a research note.
The Swiss company said its all-important watches and jewellery division had seen its operating profit leap 20.8 percent to 1.6 billion Swiss francs, despite large-scale investments in marketing to promote its luxury Omega brand during the London Olympics.
The group said it had especially seen strong growth in sales of its mid-range and high-priced products.
While Swatch's low-end plastic watches are perhaps its most recognisable, the Swiss company operates in every
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