DARMSTADT (dpa-AFX) - Software AG has set itself cautious operating margin targets for the new fiscal year. The MDax company announced Tuesday that it expects to post an operating profit of 16 to 18 percent of revenue before special items, interest, taxes and goodwill amortization. Analysts had previously expected an operating margin of almost 20 percent. The forecast includes the positive contribution of the planned sales growth, which the group estimates at 6 to 10 percent in product sales adjusted for currency effects, as well as a cost and efficiency program. However, it also takes into account a temporary negative impact from cost increases as well as strategic decisions related to software subscriptions in the cloud and in the database division, it said. The Darmstadt-based company did not initially provide further details.

In the growth division with integration software for interlinking IT systems (Digital Business), Software AG expects a currency-adjusted increase in recurring revenue of 10 to 15 percent compared to the previous year. In the traditional database division Adabas & Natural, the company expects more or less stagnation; here, annual recurring revenues are likely to settle in a range between minus and plus two percent compared to the previous year./men/jha/