The Electrolux share

In 2019, innovative and premium products generated a positive sales mix development and price increases fully offset significant headwinds from raw material costs, trade tariffs and currency. However, lower volumes and manufacturing transition costs impacted earnings negatively. Electrolux total market capitalization increased by 23% to SEK 71.1 billion. Total return for the Electrolux B share was 27% in 2019.

Share price development

The Electrolux B share increased by 23% in 2019, slightly underperforming the broader Swedish market index, OMX Stockholm, which increased by 30% during the same period. The relative underperformance was due to a drop in share price towards the end of the year after an announcement on issues negatively impacting the operations in North America. Before the announcement, the share followed or overperformed OMX Stockholm, executing on its profitable growth strategy. Product mix improved through increased sales of high-margin products and price increases fully offset significant headwinds from raw materials, trade tariffs and currency.

The opening price for the Electrolux B share in 2019 was SEK 187.10. The highest closing price was SEK 266.20 on October 25 while the lowest closing price was SEK 182.70 on January 3. The closing price for the B share at year-end 2019 was SEK 229.90. The beta value of the Electrolux B share over the past five years is approximately 1.0.

Total return

Total shareholder return during the year was 27%. Over the past ten years, the average total return on an investment in Electrolux B shares has been 7% annually. The corresponding performance for the OMX Stockholm Return Index was 11%.

Share information

The Electrolux share is listed on the exchange Nasdaq Stockholm. The share capital of Electrolux amounts to SEK 1,545m corresponding to 308,920,308 million shares. In the U.S., Electrolux shares are traded over-the-counter market in the form of American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) under the symbol ELUXY.

Approximately 33% of the share capital and 27% of voting rights was owned by foreign institutions, mutual funds and private investors. Investor AB is the major Swedish shareholder with a 16.4% holding of the share capital and 28.4% of the voting rights as per December 31, 2019 (Source: Euroclear and Holdings).

Electrolux maintains a number of long-term incentive programs for senior management. Since 2004, the Group has three-year performance-based share programs. At year-end 2019, the incentive programs had a minor impact on the dilution of the total number of shares. More information on performance-based share programs is in Note 27 in the Annual Report 2019.

Electrolux — a sustainability leader in the household durables industry

The Group’s sustainability performance strengthens relations with investors and Electrolux is recognized as a leader in the household durables industry. In 2019, Electrolux was included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) World and Europe indexes and thereby ranks among the top 10% of the world’s 2,500 largest companies for social and environmental performance.

Additionally, Electrolux has received recognition from other indexes and organizations, including SAM, OEKOM, CDP and UN Global Compact Top 100. CDP, an international non-profit that encourages society to cut emissions, mitigate climate risks and develop a low-carbon economy, included Electrolux in its leadership A- category for the company's action on climate change.