Fourth-quarter highlightsComparable sales up 2%, driven by 4% growth in the HealthTech portfolio
Currency-comparable order intake up 15%, driven by North America, China and Western Europe
Adjusted EBITA improved 50 basis points to 11.9% of sales and amounted to EUR 842 million
EBITA amounted to EUR 263 million, or 3.7% of sales
Net loss of EUR 39 million, impacted by one-time charges including previously announced pension de-risking, compared to net income of EUR 134 million in Q4 2014
Free cash flow of EUR 740 million, compared to EUR 559 million in Q4 2014
Philips Lighting separation process on track
Full-year highlights
Comparable sales up 2% to EUR 24.2 billion, driven by above 4% growth in the HealthTech portfolio
Currency-comparable order intake up 5%, driven by North America and Western Europe
Adjusted EBITA improved 20 basis points to 9.2% of sales and amounted to EUR 2.2 billion
EBITA totaled EUR 1.4 billion, or 5.7% of sales, compared to EUR 821 million, or 3.8% of sales, in 2014
Net income amounted to EUR 659 million, compared to EUR 411 million in 2014
Free cash flow of EUR 325 million, compared to EUR 497 million in 2014
Return on invested capital increased to 7.0%, compared to 4.5% in 2014
Proposal to maintain dividend at EUR 0.80 per share
Frans van Houten, CEO:
The fourth quarter of 2015 was another quarter in which Philips delivered year-on-year operational improvements. We increased Adjusted EBITA across all three sectors and generated close to EUR 1 billion of cash from operations.
In the fourth quarter, we saw continued sales growth and strong 15% currency-comparable order intake growth in Healthcare, with margins also improving year-on-year. Consumer Lifestyle showed continued robust growth across all businesses, most notably Health & Wellness, while productivity and product mix improvements resulted in significantly higher margins. Lighting again delivered year-on-year performance improvements, driven by sustained comparable sales and margin growth in the LED business and our effective management of the market decline in conventional lamps.
Overall, 2015 was a solid year for Philips, as illustrated by consistent performance improvements in the face of ongoing challenging macroeconomic circumstances. Lighting showed another year of operational improvements, and our HealthTech portfolio, which combines the Healthcare and Consumer Lifestyle businesses, delivered promising comparable sales growth of more than 4% overall for the year, demonstrating our progress in capitalizing on opportunities in this large and growing market. Order intake growth of 5% in Healthcare was encouraging.
For 2016, we continue to expect modest comparable sales growth and we will build on our 2015 operational performance improvement. Taking into account ongoing macro-economic headwinds and the phasing of costs and sales, we expect improvements in the year to be back-end loaded.
Accelerate! and Separation Update
Our Accelerate! program continues to drive strong operational improvements across the organization. In Healthcare, for example, we increased sales of ClarityIQ upgrades for interventional X-ray systems by 50% in 2015 compared to 2013, by automating our system upgrade sales process. In Consumer Lifestyle, we virtually doubled sales on Double 11' day in China compared to 2014, by customizing our propositions and leveraging our digital capabilities. In Lighting, we delivered solid sales growth for Consumer Luminaires in the Benelux and Iberia by adapting the portfolio of this business to locally relevant value propositions.
Philips' three cost savings programs all delivered ahead of plan in 2015. The company achieved EUR 290 million of gross savings in overhead costs, EUR 379 million of gross savings in procurement, and EUR 187 million of productivity savings from the End2End process improvement program.
Philips is on schedule to be able to complete the separation of the Lighting business in the first half of this year. As previously stated, Philips is reviewing all strategic options for Philips Lighting, including an initial public offering and a private sale. Costs related to the separation amounted to EUR 183 million in 2015. For 2016, the company continues to expect separation costs to be in the range of EUR 200-300 million.
Q4 2015 Financial and Operational Overview
Healthcare
Healthcare comparable sales grew 3% year-on-year and currency-comparable order intake grew by 15%. The Adjusted EBITA margin increased by 100 basis points to 15.8%, driven by cost productivity improvements and positive currency impacts.
We are encouraged by 15% order intake growth in Healthcare, which was driven by strong growth in North America, Western Europe and a substantial rebound in China. Our focus on multi-year strategic partnerships continued to pay off, as illustrated by three new partnerships based on a managed services model to optimize the delivery of care: with Mackenzie Health in Canada, Granada's Clinical Hospital in Spain, and Hospices Civils de Lyon in France.
Consumer Lifestyle
Consumer Lifestyle comparable sales increased by 6% year-on-year, driven by double-digit growth in Health & Wellness and low-single-digit growth in Personal Care and Domestic Appliances. The Adjusted EBITA margin increased by 180 basis points to 17.8% year-on-year.
Consumer Lifestyle once again delivered a strong top and bottom-line performance, with double-digit growth in growth geographies. In India, for instance, strong sales of the Philips Airfryer, juicers, soup makers and mixer grinders drove double-digit growth. Oral Healthcare continued its strong trajectory, with a very solid performance in North America, China, and Germany, Austria & Switzerland.
Lighting
Lighting again improved its operational results, with the Adjusted EBITA margin increasing by 150 basi
