Sixt recorded the best results ever in the 100-year company history, according to preliminary key figures for financial year 2011 on March 15 during the company's annual press conference.

According to preliminary calculations, consolidated earnings before taxes (EBT), the key earnings figure for the company, improved 35.8% year-on-year to EUR 138.9 million. EBT margin rose from 7.7% to 10.1% of consolidated operating revenue. The basis for this development was above all the strong demand for mobility services, the consistent focus on margin improvements and the progress made in foreign expansion, the company reported.

"Last year's result is outstanding and exceeds our expectations,” said Erich Sixt, chairman of the Managing Board of Sixt AG. “In time for our jubilee, we underline our claim to be among the most profitable mobility service providers worldwide. What's more, we managed to point the way to the future in 2011 with our entry in the U.S. market and the start of the car-sharing business DriveNow. Sixt is operatively and financially well-equipped to generate another satisfactory group profit in 2012 despite a significantly more difficult market environment."

Group Revenue and Earnings Performance For 2011:
Rental revenues for 2011 were up by 10.9% to EUR 895.7 million. In Germany, Sixt strengthened its position as the No. 1 vehicle rental company, seeing its revenues grow by 7.2%.

In Europe — outside Germany — Sixt's rental revenues grew above average by 19.5% EUR 290.6 million. As well, the company gained market shares. Particularly encouraging, the company reports, was the business development in Spain, France, Austria and Switzerland.

The international share of the total rental revenue increased from 30% to 32% in 2011.

Total consolidated revenue increased 1.7% from EUR 1.54 billion to EUR 1.56 billion. Consolidated earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) totaled 189.8 EUR million, which was 21.5% more than the year before (2010: EUR 156.2 million).

At EUR 138.9 million, EBT reached a new historic high and were 35.8% better than the result recorded the year before (2010: EUR 102.3 million).

After taxes Sixt Group recorded a profit of EUR 97.5 million, an increase of 37.8% as against the previous year (2010: EUR 70.7 million). According to the company, this strong profit development can be primarily attributed to the following factors:

• Lively demand for mobility services from business and private customers in a still robust economic climate in Europe.

• More or less stable rental prices.

• Consistent focus on margin improvements in line with the principle of earnings before revenue.

• Good progress with internationalization.

• Efficiency gains throughout the entire Group.

Close To EUR 600 Million Equity
In 2011 Sixt managed once more to strengthen its equity basis. As of Dec. 31, 2011, the group’s equity amounted to EUR 596.1 million — 10.2% or EUR 55.2 million above the figure as of the reporting date 2010 (EUR 540.9 million). The equity ratio improved further to 25.6% of total assets (Dec. 31, 2010: 24.3%), which continues to be a top rating in the Germany rental and leasing sector.[PAGEBREAK]

Higher Investments
Following the good demand Sixt increased its investments last year. In the reporting year 158,900 vehicles (2010: 140,700 vehicles) were added to the rental and leasing fleets at a total value of EUR 3.75 billion (2010: EUR 3.15 billion). This equals an increase of 13% in the number of vehicles and 19% in the value of vehicles.

Outlook for 2012
Sixt is readying itself for a more difficult year in 2012, given the general expectation of a global economic slowdown. The Managing Board considers a further increase in rental revenues and growth in leasing sales possible, but also reckons with higher operating costs. Though Sixt expects to see another good earnings position in 2012, because of the macroeconomic risks the high earnings level of 2011 will be hard to repeat.

Developments in Vehicle Rental
With presence in Germany, France, the U.K., Spain, the Benelux countries, Austria, Switzerland and Monaco, Sixt subsidiaries cover more than 70% of the European rental market. In the European countries other than Germany, and in other regions of the world, the Sixt brand is represented by a close-knit network of franchisees. Sixt has vehicle rental operations in a total of about 100 countries. At the end of 2011, Sixt had 1,846 rental offices worldwide, 485 of them in Germany.

The successful start on the U.S.-American rental market is one of the highlights of the last year. Since 2011, Sixt has been represented in the metropolises of Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and Palm Beach in the state of Florida. The volume of Florida's vehicle rental market alone equals roughly the size of the German rental market. Sixt plans to increase its U.S. presence step-by-step and cautiously. The business performance in the first year exceeded expectations.

In June 2011, the new premium car-sharing offer DriveNow got off to an encouraging start. It is a joint venture owned in equal parts by Sixt and BMW. More than 18,000 members have already registered for this innovative model of urban mobility. At present, DriveNow is available in Munich, Berlin and Düsseldorf, with a speedy expansion to further metropolitan areas in Germany and Europe planned for 2012. The long-term aim is still to expand DriveNow into a worldwide brand.