EANS-Adhoc: gategroup increases revenue, operating performance improves
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ad-hoc disclosure transmitted by euro adhoc with the aim of a Europe-wide
distribution. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this
announcement.
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3-month report
10.05.2012
ZURICH, May 10, 2012 —
— Revenue of CHF 656.7 million, up 2.9% on a reported basis; up 6.0% in
constant currencies
— Segment EBITDA of CHF 25.5 million, up 4.5% on a reported basis; up 7.0%
in constant currencies
— EBITDA margin of 3.9%, up 0.1 percentage point
— Operating profit of CHF 4.7 million, up 20.5% on a reported basis; up
17.9% in constant currencies
— Loss for the quarter of CHF 14.8 million versus a loss of CHF 6.2 million
in 2011, due to refinancing costs
— Cash flow from operations of CHF 2.7 million, compared to a negative
CHF 28.6 million reported the previous year
— Net debt of CHF 205.5 million, an increase of CHF 11.6 million over 2011
— Refinancing successfully completed with senior unsecured notes of
EUR 350 million and a EUR 100 million unsecured revolving credit facility
gategroup Holding AG, the leading independent global provider of
onboard products and services, delivered improved revenue and
operating performance in the first quarter ending March 31, 2012.
The results are the first ever published for the January-March period
since the Company listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange in 2009. This
action follows a decision by the Board of Directors to introduce
quarterly reporting to enhance performance tracking of gategroup by
shareholders and investors.
gategroup’s business is seasonal and a large percentage of revenue is
generated in the second and third quarters each year, which reflects
long-established consumer travel patterns and the performance of
airlines, the Company’s primary customer base. This seasonality
affects the comparability of gategroup results between quarterly
periods.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization
(„Segment EBITDA“) is also seasonal, and, like revenue, generally
exhibits its strongest performance in the second and third quarters.
Cash generated from operations is strongest in the fourth quarter due
to the invoice-payment cycle following the high travel season.
On a reported basis, Group revenue of CHF 656.7 million was CHF 18.3
million higher than the comparable 2011 period, an improvement of
2.9%. The improvement was driven mainly by higher passenger volume
year over year. On a constant currency basis, revenue rose to CHF
676.8 million, an increase of 6.0%.
Segment EBITDA was CHF 25.5 million, up 4.5% from CHF 24.4 million in
2011, resulting in an EBITDA margin of 3.9% on both a reported and
constant currencies basis. An external event that impacted the Q1
income statement for 2011 was the Japan disaster.
Operating profit was up 20.5% on a reported basis to CHF 4.7 million
while on a constant currency basis the operating profit showed a
17.9% improvement. Loss for the period was CHF 14.8 million due to
higher financial expenses that include one-off costs associated with
the refinancing, unfavorable foreign exchange movements and taxes. In
2011 the loss was CHF 6.2 million.
Cash flow from operations, meanwhile, was CHF 2.7 million versus a
negative result in 2011 of CHF 28.6 million. The cash flow result was
mainly due to better working capital management driven by a lower
investment in inventory, lower outflows from trade payables and lower
cash requirements for provisions and retirement benefit obligations.
Notable developments in the first quarter of 2012 included:
— Successful execution of a refinancing strategy including the issuance of
senior unsecured notes in the amount of EUR 350 million to repay
indebtedness and cancel all commitments under the existing credit
facilities, and issuance of a EUR 100 million multi-currency revolving
credit facility for working capital and general corporate purposes
— The acquisition of Helios Market, Product and Production Development by
gategroup’s deSter subsidiary to leverage synergies in marketing,
manufacturing and supply chains solutions by these complementary
businesses
— The exercise of a call option with India Hospitality Corp. to acquire the
remaining 26% of Skygourmet to provide maximum flexibility to run the
Indian business as a fully owned and integrated operation
— A realignment of gategroup operations into two businesses – Airline
Solutions and Product and Supply Chain Solutions
„Looking ahead for this year, gategroup is maintaining an expectation
of flat growth in real terms across its portfolio given the uncertain
economic conditions that exist. Therefore, we are not providing
definitive guidance on profitability due to potential volatility in
certain key regions, notably Europe and its associated sub-markets.
Nevertheless, we balance our short-term tactics with a long-term view
and we will continue to invest in the business to enable future
growth,“ said gategroup CEO Andrew Gibson.
„Demand for air travel has shown steady upward growth for more than
40 years. We see no reason why that long-term trend will not continue
with rebounds in passenger volumes after some periods of flat
demand,“ Gibson said.
Please see the following link on the gategroup web site for a copy of
the Q1 financial results report and additional information: http://ww
w.gategroupmember.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=53
4&Itemid=228
About gategroup:
gategroup is the leading independent global provider of products,
services and solutions related to a passenger’s onboard experience.
gategroup comprises the following brands: deSter, eGate Solutions,
Gate Aviation, Gate Gourmet, Gate Retail Onboard, Gate Safe, Harmony,
Performa, potmstudios, Pourshins and Supplair.
Shares of Zurich-based gategroup are traded on the SIX Swiss Exchange
under the symbol GATE. Please visit www.gategroup.com.
IMPORTANT NOTICE
This publication may contain specific forward-looking statements,
e.g., statements including terms like „believe“, „assume“, „expect“
or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements are subject
to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may
result in a substantial divergence between the actual results,
financial situation, development or performance of the Company and
those explicitly or implicitly presumed in these statements. Against
the background of these uncertainties readers should not rely on
forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no responsibility to
update or revise any of these forward-looking statements or to adapt
them whether to reflect new information, future events, developments
or circumstances or otherwise.
Financial overview
period ended March 31, 2012
in CHF m except per share data
January – March, January – March,
2012 2011
Income Statement
—————-
Revenue 656.7 638.4
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EBITDA 25.5 24.4
—— —- —-
EBITDA margin in % 3.9% 3.8%
—————– — —
Operating profit 4.7 3.9
—————- — —
Operating profit margin in % 0.7% 0.6%
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Loss before tax (9.7) (1.6)
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Loss for the period (14.8) (6.2)
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Basic earnings per share in CHF (0.58) (0.25)
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Diluted earnings per share in CHF (0.58) (0.25)
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March 31, 2012 March 31, 2011
Balance Sheet
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Current assets 706.6 869.6
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Non-current assets 902.2 905.0
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Total assets 1,608.8 1,774.6
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Current liabilities 545.6 561.4
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Non-current liabilities 604.7 795.7
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Total liabilities 1,150.3 1,357.1
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Total equity 458.5 417.5
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Short-term debt 23.3 31.8
————— —- —-
Long-term debt 438.4 583.2
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Cash and cash equivalents 256.2 421.1
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Net debt 205.5 193.9
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January – March, January – March,
2012 2011
Cash Flow
———
Loss before tax (9.7) (1.6)
————— —- —-
Cash generated from /
(used in) operations 2.7 (28.6)
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Interest, net (3.9) (5.9)
————- —- —-
Income taxes paid, net (8.4) (3.9)
———————- —- —-
Net cash flow used in operating
activities (9.6) (38.4)
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Acquisition of subsidiaries,
net of cash acquired (47.1) 0.0
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Capital expenditure (12.5) (6.3)
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Other 1.3 4.1
—– — —
Cash flow used in investing
activities (58.3) (2.2)
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Cash flow used in financing
activities (110.0) (1.6)
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Decrease in cash and cash
equivalents (177.9) (42.2)
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INVITATION TO ANALYSTS AND INVESTORS
gategroup CFO Thomas Bucher invites analysts and investors to
participate in a telephone conference call regarding the 2012 first
quarter results.
The presentation can be accessed via webcast and dial-in
teleconference at 14:00 CET on Thursday, May 10, 2012. To listen to
the live presentation via teleconference, call the dial-in number
approximately 15 minutes before the start time. Once dialed in,
please follow the instructions given over the phone.
Direct dial-in numbers:
+41 (0)91 610 56 00 (Europe)
+44 (0) 203 059 58 62 (UK)
+1 866 291 41 66 (USA – Toll-Free)
To link to the live webcast of the presentation, please go to the
„Investor Pack“ tab under the „Investor Relations“ section of the
gategroup web site, www.gategroup.com. Please note that the Q&A
session following the presentation is for analysts and investors
only.
Further inquiry note:
For media, John Bronson, jbronson@gategroup.com, +41 43 812 2048, or For
investors/analysts, Dagmara Robinson, drobinson@gategroup.com, +41 43 812 5496
end of announcement euro adhoc
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issuer: gategroup Holding AG
Balz-Zimmermannstrasse 7
CH-8302 Kloten
phone: +41 43 812 54 96
FAX: +41 43 812 91 19
mail: invest@gategroup.com
WWW: http://www.gategroupmember.com/
sector: Consumer Goods
ISIN: CH0100185955
indexes:
stockmarkets: Hauptsegment: SIX Swiss Exchange
language: English