HAMBURG (dpa-AFX) - Drug discovery company Evotec expects its business to perform significantly worse as a result of a hacker attack. The group cut its forecasts for both sales and operating profit. "Lower productivity during the second quarter has significantly impacted our financial results for the first half of 2023," said group CEO Werner Lanthaler, according to a statement Thursday evening. The manager nevertheless offered hope after a "strong start with excellent" results in the first quarter. Shareholders were nevertheless pessimistic after the close of the stock exchange. Evotec shares lost 5.3 percent on the Tradegate trading platform compared to the Xetra closing price.

As the Hamburg-based company, which is listed on the MDax, further announced, annual sales are expected to reach only 750 to 790 million euros. In the worst case, that would be only about the same as in the previous year. Previously, 820 to 840 million euros had been on the cards for the current year. In addition, the company's management now intends to cut back research spending.

In terms of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda), adjusted for special effects, management expects a significant decline to 60 to 80 million euros. For 2022, Evotec had reported just under 102 million euros and wanted to increase this result to 115 to 130 million euros in the current year. For the current year, the Group management calculates one-time costs of more than 90 million euros. The Management Board maintains its targets for 2025.

For the first quarter, Evotec reported on Thursday evening a revenue increase of more than 30 percent to more than 210 million euros. So far, the group had not commented on its financial figures for the start of the year.

Evotec had been forced to leave the MDax due to the delayed publication of its audited annual report for 2022 as a result of the cyberattack, but was allowed to return promptly. In response to the hacker attack in early April, the group shut down all systems connected to external sources. "Evotec was able to assure its partners that the integrity of the scientific data was not compromised," it said. As a result, it cost Evotec about 25 million euros to deal with the impact of the attack. Operations reportedly resumed at the end of April, but the group continued to lag behind in productivity recently.

For the first six months, Lanthaler's management expects a group loss of more than 370 million euros. Some of the lost sales are likely to be made up at a later date. However, the general market conditions are unlikely to improve for the rest of the year, according to management estimates./ngu/stw/he