GN Store Nord in Q3 2022 delivered 24% revenue growth, while organic growth was -1%, supported by solid Enterprise performance. Strong initial uptake of ReSound OMNIA
- - GN Store Nord
- In Q3 2022, GN delivered 24% revenue growth, while organic revenue growth was -1%, leading to revenue of DKK 4,701 million
- Adj. EBITA was DKK 548 million and free cash flow excl. M&A was DKK -217 million driven by positive free cash flows across GN Hearing and GN Audio, but off-set by negative cash flow in Other primarily due to timing of financial derivatives
- Adj. Leverage ended at 5.9x, reflecting a temporary inventory build-up, higher freight and material costs, the development in FX and cash flow seasonality
- On November 2, 2022, GN Store Nord revised the financial guidance for growth in adj. EPS as a consequence of the revised financial guidance for GN Audio
- - GN Hearing
- GN Hearing delivered revenue growth of 15% in Q3 2022, while organic revenue growth was 0%. The growth was driven by strong performance in Europe while negatively impacted by soft market conditions in the US and in Rest of World. Adj. EBITA margin was 10.6% in the Core business impacted by higher freight and material costs and investments in launch activities
- The Emerging business, primarily Lively, delivered another strong quarter with 64% organic revenue growth. EBITA was DKK -40 million
- Free cash flow excl. M&A was DKK 60 million driven by investments in growth opportunities
- ReSound OMNIA, which started shipment in the US on August 25, is showing strong initial uptake. The new platform was rolled out across most of Europe during September
- Financial guidance confirmed
- - GN Audio
- GN Audio delivered revenue growth of 29% in Q3 2022, of which -2% was organic, driven by a solid 7% organic revenue growth in Enterprise due to the world-leading and updated product portfolio. The growth was negatively impacted by -34% organic revenue growth in the Consumer business, which accounts for less than 20% of GN Audio Organic
- SteelSeries' organic revenue growth was -13% in a declining market. SteelSeries delivered a strong sequential improvement of more than 20% compared to Q2 2022 driven by better supply, new product launches and market share gains
- Adj. EBITA margin was 14.6%, reflecting investments in growth opportunities, higher freight and material costs, the development in FX and the consolidation of SteelSeries
- Free cash flow excl. M&A was DKK 21 million reflecting strong operational cash flow before working capital of DKK 473 million in a challenging environment, but offset by inventory build-up
- Acknowledging the current sentiment related to a potential recession, GN Audio is taking proactive and significant actions to reduce the cost base, inventory levels and debt
- On November 2, 2022, GN Audio revised its financial guidance to reflect the impact of the worsened macroeconomic environment, lower consumer sentiment and general higher uncertainty
Quotes from executive management
Gitte Aabo, CEO of GN Hearing, comments: “I’m very encouraged by the positive market reception and the strong customer demand for our new flagship product, ReSound OMNIA, and the corresponding Beltone Achieve. The product has received excellent early feedback highlighting significant hearing improvements in noisy environments. Launched only this August, we already now see this product platform drive strong double-digit growth in October for the core business. With our fully updated portfolio across all customer segments, including the newly opened over-the-counter channel in the U.S., GN Hearing is strongly positioned to take market shares.”
René Svendsen-Tune, CEO of GN Audio, comments: “Today, GN Audio is double the size of the business it was in 2019, and we continue to see more organizations move towards flexible and hybrid working environments. In a macroeconomic instability it is crucial for decision-makers to continue investing in the types of cost-effective productivity enhancing devices that GN Audio offers. We are acknowledging the current sentiment in the market, so we will take proactive and strong actions to adapt to a changing and unpredictable world.”
Financial overview Q3 2022
| GN Store Nord* | GN Hearing | GN Audio | |||||
| DKK million | Core business | Emerging business | GN Hearing | GN Audio Organic | SteelSeries | GN Audio | |
| Revenue | 4,701 | 1,495 | 59 | 1,554 | 2,551 | 596 | 3,147 |
| Organic growth | -1% | 0% | 64% | 0% | -2% | -13% | -2% |
| Adj. EBITA** | 548 | 159 | -40 | 119 | 461 | ||
| Adj. EBITA margin** | 11.7% | 10.6% | 7.7% | 14.6% | |||
* Including "Other", ** Excluding non-recurring items (DKK -21 million in OPEX in GN Audio, DKK -26 million in COGS in GN Hearing and DKK -12 million in OPEX in GN Hearing),
Financial guidance 2022
The financial guidance, which was revised on November 2, 2022, is confirmed.
| Organic revenue growth | Adjusted EBITA margin3) | Non-recurring items (DKK million) 4) | Growth in adjusted EPS5) | |
| GN Hearing | ||||
| - Core business organic | 5-8% | ~14% | ~ -150 | |
| - Emerging Business1) (DKK million) | ~ -200 | |||
| GN Audio2) 6) | 14-15% | ~ -500 | ||
| - GN Audio organic | -7% to -5% | |||
| - SteelSeries | Better than -25% | |||
| Other (DKK million) | ~ -190 | |||
| GN Store Nord | ~ -30% |
Note 1) Emerging Business mainly includes the Lively acquisition
Note 2) The SteelSeries organic revenue growth will be reported as M&A growth for GN Audio
Note 3) Excluding non-recurring items
Note 4) Non-recurring items in GN Hearing primarily related to supply chain investments (DKK ~ -150m) and in GN Audio related to transaction and integration costs (DKK ~ -200m) as well as non-cash PPAs (DKK ~ -200m), associated with SteelSeries and cost reduction measures (DKK ~ -100m)
Note 5) Compared to 2021 adjusted EPS (excluding non-recurring items and amortization and impairment of acquired intangible assets) of DKK 15.29
Note 6) Reflecting updated FX assumptions for 2022 following the significant appreciation of the USD since August 2022
Financial guidance based on foreign exchange rates as of November 11, 2022
Teleconference
GN Store Nord will host a teleconference at 11.00 a.m. CET on November 11. Please visit www.gn.com/investor to access the teleconference. Presentation material will be available on the website prior to the start of the teleconference.
For further information, please contact:
Investors and analysts
Anne Sofie Staunsbæk Veyhe
Vice President – Investor Relations, Treasury and M&A
Tel: +45 45 75 85 06
or
Rune Sandager
Senior Director – Investor Relations
Tel: +45 45 75 92 57
Press and the media
Steen Frentz Laursen
Vice President, Corporate Communications
Tel: +45 20 65 34 20
About GN
GN facilitates communication between people through intelligent hearing, audio, video, and gaming technology. Inspired by people and driven by our passion for innovation, we leverage technologies to deliver unique user experiences that bring people closer through the power of sound and vision.
GN was founded more than 150 years ago with a vision to connect the world. Today, we proudly honor that legacy with our world-leading expertise in the human ear, audio, video and speech, wireless technologies, software, miniaturization, and collaboration with leading technology partners. GN's solutions are marketed by the brands ReSound, SteelSeries, Jabra, Beltone, Interton, BlueParrott, Danavox and FalCom in 100 countries. Founded in 1869, the GN Group employs more than 7,000 people and is listed on Nasdaq Copenhagen (GN.CO).
Visit our homepage GN.com - and connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.
Attachment
