North Media: Improved H1 earnings – FY 2021 guidance upgraded
Announcement no. 18/-2021
18 August 2021
Q2 2021 highlights (Q2 2020 comparative numbers in brackets):
North Media improved its earnings in the second quarter even though revenue was affected by new growth initiatives and timing differences. Both Last Mile (FK Distribution) and the Digital Services growth businesses improved their EBIT margins, to 27.9% and 20.9% respectively.
- Consolidated revenue was up by 2% to DKK 259m (DKK 254m).
- The Last Mile business area (FK Distribution) recorded 1% growth. The volume of printed matter for distribution by FK Distribution normalised after the COVID-19 lockdowns had impacted volumes in January and February.
- The Digital Services business area (BoligPortal, Ofir and Bekey) reported 13% growth. Ofir, the jobs platform, produced a 102% increase in revenue, while BoligPortal and Bekey had growth rates of +1% and –10% respectively.
- Consolidated EBIT improved to DKK 68m (DKK 56m). The EBIT margin rose to 26.1% (22.1%.)
- FK Distribution and Ofir both improved their earnings. BoligPortal achieved an EBIT margin of 36% even with the loss of revenue from products that are now free and higher marketing costs. Bekey’s earnings declined due to rescheduled contracts.
Highlights of the H1 2021 report (H1 2020 comparative numbers in brackets):
North Media’s overall results for the H1 2021 period were in line with expectations.
- Consolidated revenue was down by 2% to DKK 502m (DKK 510m). Revenue was down by 3% in Last Mile (FK Distribution), but up by 10% in Digital Services.
- EBIT was DKK 132m (DKK 122m). The EBIT margin was up by 2.4 percentage points to 26.3% due to efficiency improvements, economies of scale and a better product mix.
- Profit for the period, net of the return on securities, improved to DKK 103m (DKK 94m).
- Profit for the period was DKK 151m (DKK 138m) for a 33% return on equity.
Guidance for 2021 upgraded
As reported in Company Announcement no. 17-2021 of 12 August, North Media has upgraded its FY 2021 guidance, mainly due to greater clarity about FK Distribution’s markets.
- Consolidated revenue is expected in the DKK 1,015m–1,035m range (previous guidance: DKK 995m–1,025m).
- Consolidated EBIT is expected in the DKK 250m–265m range (previous guidance: DKK 235m–255m). In other words, the full-year EBIT is expected to surpass the result of DKK 240m achieved in 2020.
- Revenue and EBIT guidance for FK Distribution and Ofir raised.
- Guidance for BoligPortal and Bekey lowered. However, BoligPortal is still expected to improve on 2020 despite the launch of a new platform and the transition to subscription-driven revenue streams.
“The good developments of our core business are continuing, and we have momentum in our strategic initiatives intended to lift our revenue and earnings from 2022. These include the launch of SaaS products in BoligPortal, building new customer groups in Ofir and Bekey’s contracts in the stairwells segment,” says Kåre Wigh, Group Executive Director & CFO.
For further information, please contact:
Kåre Wigh, Group Executive Director & CFO, mobile +45 25 65 21 45
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