“
We envision a future where we
offer better security and safety to our
customers through a combination of
our outstanding security officers and
a more innovation and data-driven
approach
“
our protective services. To realize this ambition, and to
be able to scale up, we need to modernize our infor-
mation systems and IT capabilities. With our strong
presence and the large quantities of data available, we
are best positioned to continue to lead the industry and
create higher value for our clients and shareholders.
HEALTHY GROWTH IN 2018
We experienced strong market momentum in 2018,
reaching organic sales growth of 6 percent (5). We
achieved a sales milestone of more than SEK 100
billion and improved profitability, while at the same time
we continued our investments in the security services
of tomorrow. We continue to drive our strategy of
combining different protective services into security
solutions for our clients. Security solutions and elec-
tronic security sales grew by 21 percent compared with
2017 and represented 20 percent of total Group sales.
The operating margin improved to 5.2 percent (5.1).
We have loyal but demanding clients who believe in our
direction, which is manifested in an excellent client
retention rate. Our average client retention rate in 2018
was 91 percent.
Security Services North America delivered solid growth
and profitability improvement. We enjoyed stronger
growth in Security Services Europe compared with last
year, but we were not satisfied with the operating
margin in Europe and identified some improvement areas.
We initiated a cost savings program that will contribute to
the operating result of the business segment going
forward. We experienced a favorable overall development
in Security Services Ibero-America and continued strong
growth in our AMEA (Africa, the Middle East and Asia)
division.
Earnings per share improved by 12 percent, after ad-
justments for changes in exchange rates, items affecting
comparability and the impact of the US tax reform.
During 2018, we continued our efforts and investments to
strengthen our protective services offering. We completed
several important electronic security acquisitions in the
US, France, the Netherlands and Hong Kong, and are hap-
py to welcome these teams to Securitas. Through these
acquisitions, we have further strengthened our capability
in electronic security across key markets.
INCREASED CLIENT FOCUS
We have approximately 150 000 clients globally, exclud-
ing monitoring-only clients. 140 of these are global clients
with complex cross-border security solutions. Our strong,
loyal client base gives us significant growth opportunities.
Stay Ahead with Securitas Ireland - April 2019 | 05