The Company

Responding to challenges

Health care, nutrition and high-tech materials are our core competencies. Although the major challenges of sustainable development differ in each of these areas, Bayer has a clear goal for all three: to provide innovative products that benefit people, improve the quality of life and create value.

Sales by subgroup in 2006 (in € million)
Total 28,956

Bayer AG has always been dedicated to the goal of ensuring sustainable development. Founded in 1863, the Bayer Group is headquartered in Leverkusen, Germany, and has around 350 companies on five continents. Including last year’s acquisition of Schering AG, Berlin, Germany, the Group had roughly 106,000 employees worldwide at year-end 2006.

The Bayer Group is headed by a management holding company. This sets the strategic framework for the subgroups and service companies, which operate as independent entities. The operational business is performed by three subgroups: Bayer HealthCare AG, Bayer CropScience AG and Bayer MaterialScience AG, while central service functions are grouped at three service companies: Bayer Business Services GmbH, Bayer Technology Services GmbH and Currenta GmbH & Co. OHG. One of the main changes that took place in 2006 was Bayer HealthCare’s acquisition of Schering, which now operates as Bayer Schering Pharma AG

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The Bayer Group generated sales of around €29 billion with its portfolio of around 5,000 products in 2006 and Group net income increased five percent to €1.7 billion. That was good for the company’s stock: The share price rose 15.2 percent during the year. Including the dividend of €0.95 per share paid in 2006, our stock achieved an overall performance of more than 18 percent. In the first quarter of 2007 too, Bayer stock made positive progress, with the share price on March 31, 2007 being 17.7 percent higher than the closing price on December 31, 2006.

A recent survey established that 73 percent of the capital stock identified was held by foreign investors, underlining the international orientation of the Group and the importance of Bayer stock on international finance markets. The countries with the most Bayer stock held were the United States and the United Kingdom.