Sonic Healthcare : Full Year Statutory Accounts Opens in a new Window

Sonic Healthcare Limited

ABN 24 004 196 909

Annual Report - 30 June 2019

Contents

Corporate Directory	1
Chairman's Letter	2
CEO Report	3
Financial History	6
Directors' Report	7
Auditor's Independence Declaration	37
Corporate Governance Statement	38
Financial Report	49
Directors' Declaration	117
Independent Auditor's Report to the Members	118
Shareholders' Information	124

Sonic Healthcare Limited and controlled entities

Corporate Directory

Directors	Prof. M.R. Compton	Chairman	Mr N. Mitchell
	Dr C.S. Goldschmidt	Managing Director	Mr L.J. Panaccio
	Mr C.D. Wilks	Finance Director	Ms K.D. Spargo
	Dr P.J. Dubois		Dr E.J. Wilson
Company Secretary	Mr P.J. Alexander
Principal registered	Level 22, Grosvenor Place,	Ph:	61 2 9855 5444
office in Australia	225 George Street, Sydney	Fax:	61 2 9878 5066
	New South Wales, 2000, Australia.	Website: www.sonichealthcare.com
Share registry	Computershare Investor Services Pty Limited	Ph:	1300 556 161 (Within Australia)
	Level 5, 115 Grenfell Street, Adelaide,	Ph:	61 3 9415 4000 (Outside Australia)
	South Australia, 5000, Australia.	Fax	1300 534 987 (Within Australia)
	Website:	www.computershare.com	Fax:	61 3 9473 2408 (Outside Australia)
	Email:	www.investorcentre.com/contact
Auditor	PricewaterhouseCoopers
Solicitors	Allens
	Gilbert + Tobin
Bankers	Australia and New Zealand Banking Group	HSBC
	BNP Paribas		JPMorgan Chase Bank
	Commerzbank		Mizuho Bank
	Commonwealth Bank of Australia	MUFG Bank
	Crédit Industriel et Commercial	National Australia Bank
	DNB Asia			Westpac Banking Corporation
Stock exchange listings	Sonic Healthcare Limited (SHL.AX) shares are listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. Sonic
	Healthcare Limited also has a Level 1 sponsored American Depositary Receipt (ADR) facility
	managed by BNY Mellon (the 'Depositary'). Sonic Healthcare Limited's ADRs are traded under the
	code 'SKHHY'.

Verification of Unaudited Information in this Annual Report

Unaudited information in this Annual Report comprises all information included in the Annual Report other than the Financial Report, the Remuneration Report within the Directors' Report, the Directors' Declaration, the Independent Auditor's Report and the Auditor's Independence Statement.

The integrity of the unaudited information has been verified as materially accurate and/or reasonable using the following processes:

• Financial information in the unaudited information has been tied to the current and/or previous audited Financial Reports, or has been gathered using the same reporting and consolidation process as used for the Financial Report (which includes several review layers), or has been sourced from third parties.
• The unaudited information has been reviewed and approved by the Managing Director and Finance Director individually, the Audit Committee, and the Board as a whole.
• Earnings guidance for the 2020 financial year is based on the detailed annual budgeting process undertaken by the Group, which culminates in Board approval of the budgets.
• The independent auditor has read the unaudited information and has considered whether the information is materially inconsistent with the Financial Report or their knowledge obtained in the audit, or otherwise appeared to be materially misstated. The auditor had nothing to report in this regard.

Forward looking statements and opinions included in the unaudited information (which may be identified by the use of terminology including 'expects', 'believes', 'targets', 'likely', 'should', 'could', 'intends', 'aims', 'is estimated' or similar expressions) are not certainties, guarantees or predictions of future performance. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward looking statements or opinions.

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Sonic Healthcare Limited and controlled entities

Chairman's Letter

Dear Fellow Shareholders,

On behalf of the Board of Sonic Healthcare, I take great pleasure in presenting to you the Company's 2019 Annual Report.

Sonic Healthcare produced a record net profit for the 2019 financial year of A$550 million, on revenues of A$6.2 billion. The Board has declared total dividends per share for the year of A$0.84, a 4% increase on the prior year, continuing our progressive dividend policy.

A standout event in the 2019 year was the acquisition of Aurora Diagnostics in the USA, and the equity raised to finance the acquisition. Aurora has opened further growth paths for Sonic in the world's largest laboratory medicine market, as described in more detail elsewhere in this Annual Report. On behalf of the Board and management team, I wish to thank our shareholders for the strong support we received for both the A$600 million institutional equity placement completed in December 2018 and the associated Share Purchase Plan ('SPP') for retail shareholders completed in February 2019, which raised A$328 million. Combined these represented the largest equity raising the Company has ever undertaken.

The equity raised and our strong cash generation enabled a reduction in net debt of A$184 million (after payments for acquisitions and dividends), lowering Sonic's gearing below our long-term average. This means that our balance sheet is very strong, and ready to support further growth. A very pleasing aspect of the financial results for 2019 was that our Return on Invested Capital ('ROIC') increased from 8.6% to 8.7%, whilst A$1 billion of additional capital was put to work. Whilst ROIC is a volatile measure, this is a good outcome.

Board renewal, development and diversity continue to be important considerations for your Board. Sonic's Board currently comprises five independent directors and three executive directors, including a pathologist, a radiologist and a registered General Medical Practitioner, in keeping with our Medical Leadership culture and strategy. We are actively recruiting for an additional independent, non-executive director, preferably a qualified medical practitioner, and hope to have the position filled by the Company's 2019 Annual General Meeting or soon afterwards. We have set ourselves the objective to reach at least 30% female representation on our Board within two years - I note we have had more than 20% since 2010 and currently have 40% female representation of our independent Non-executive Directors. Mr. Lou Panaccio, who has been Chairman of our Audit Committee since October 2010, is retiring from that position this month. Lou will remain on the Committee, and the Board has chosen Mr. Neville Mitchell as the new Committee Chairman. On the Board's behalf, I sincerely thank Lou for the exceptional leadership he has demonstrated in his role as Chairman of the Audit Committee, and congratulate Neville on his appointment. Dr Philip Dubois is standing for re-election at this year's AGM, with the full support of the Board. Philip has indicated that, should he be re-elected by shareholders at the 2019 AGM, he will retire from the Board by the end of that three year term.

I strongly recommend that all Sonic shareholders read our latest Corporate Responsibility Report, available on our website. This report describes how Sonic cares for our people, the environment, our own communities and communities in acute need. The Board takes great pride in Sonic's standing in these important issues, and believes that our shareholders can rightfully be proud as well. Sonic's standing as a socially responsible company continues to be recognised by external parties, including through ongoing inclusion in the FTSE4Good Index Series.

Sonic Healthcare has a clear and proven growth strategy and the cultural, financial, managerial and operational strength to further deliver on that strategy, so as to create value for shareholders, provide excellent service to our patients and their doctors, and enable fulfilling careers for our staff. I thank our doctors, managers, staff and my fellow Directors for their dedication, expertise and passion for the Company. I also thank you, our shareholders, for your continuing support of the Company and the Board.

Mark Compton AM

Chairman

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Sonic Healthcare Limited and controlled entities

CEO Report

Sonic Healthcare produced another record financial result in the 2019 financial year, in line with our expectations. Financial highlights included:

• Revenue growth of 11.6% to A$6.2 billion
• EBITDA growth of 13.3% to A$1.1 billion
• Net profit growth of 15.6% to A$550 million
• Earnings per share growth of 8.8% to A$1.22

One of the key attributes of Sonic is the consistency of our financial performance and growth, which I think are best illustrated in the two charts below. They portray our annual revenue since Sonic listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in 1987, and our annual dividends from our inaugural dividend in 1994.

Revenue History

* FY2020 revenue based on market consensus forecast, including FX rate assumptions. Illustrative only, not Sonic guidance.

As illustrated, we are expecting further growth again in 2020, when we will benefit from a full year of the Aurora Diagnostics acquisition, which was completed in January 2019, as well as ongoing organic growth and, potentially, further acquisitions.

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Sonic Healthcare Limited and controlled entities

CEO Report (continued)

Full-year Dividend History

The Company reached a significant threshold in 2019 - this is the year that we exceeded $1 billion of EBITDA for the first time. This is a great milestone for the Company and really a magnificent achievement for all of Sonic's people around the world.

Organic revenue growth for the Group as a whole in 2019 was pleasing at around 4% on a constant currency basis. Sonic's Australian, US and UK laboratory operations and our Imaging division achieved higher organic growth rates, whilst the growth of our German and Belgian operations were impacted this year by regulatory changes. I would like to particularly highlight the continuation of strong profit and margin growth in Sonic's Australian and Swiss laboratory businesses, and in our Australian diagnostic imaging business.

As is usual for Sonic, organic growth was significantly enhanced by acquisitions in the past year, and we continue to work on a rich pipeline of further acquisition, joint venture and contract opportunities to further augment Sonic's growth, strength and expertise as a Company.

Sonic also achieved a number of strategic milestones in the 2019 financial year, opening up new pathways for future growth. The most significant of these was the acquisition of Aurora Diagnostics for US$540 million (equivalent to A$750 million). Aurora is one of the leading anatomical pathology providers in the USA, with approximately 220 pathologists and 1,200 staff, operating 32 anatomical pathology practices across 19 US states. Aurora is the largest single acquisition ever made by Sonic, with annual revenue in excess of US$310 million. Following the Aurora acquisition, our US business is now our largest globally.

Sonic also acquired Pathologie Trier in July 2018, one of the largest (annual revenue of around €20 million) and most respected anatomical pathology practices in Germany.

The acquisitions of Aurora Diagnostics and Pathologie Trier are initial steps in expansion into the anatomical pathology markets in the USA and Germany. The addition of the pathologists in these practices to Sonic's existing team has created what I believe to be the largest pathologist group globally. Sonic's success to date has been driven by our Medical Leadership culture which, among other important tenets, recognises that pathologists are the natural leaders within laboratories. We look forward to working with Aurora's and Trier's management and pathologists to grow and enrich both the anatomical pathology and clinical laboratory operations of our expanded US and German businesses. This strategy is well-founded on our deep and long-standing experience in anatomical pathology in Australia.

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