DGAP-News: Bechtle's Q3 Results Again Significantly above

DGAP-News: Bechtle AG / Key word(s): Quarter Results/Interim Report Bechtle's Q3 Results Again Significantly above Prior Year 11.11.2015 / 07:30 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Bechtle's Q3 Results Again Significantly above Prior Year - Revenues and earnings up 11.0 per cent - High EBT margin of 4.8 per cent - Group headcount exceeds 7,000 for the first time Neckarsulm, 11 November 2015 - In the third quarter of 2015, Bechtle AG achieved two-digit growth rates, following up on the high dynamics of the first six months. From July to September, the revenue increased 11.0 per cent to EUR686.2 million. Both segments provided by percentage almost equal contributions to this growth. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) increased 10.5 per cent to EUR33.2 million. EBT amounted to EUR33.1 million, 11.0 per cent more than in the prior year. The EBT margin reached 4.8 per cent, a high level similar to that of the prior year. As of 30 September 2015, Bechtle had a total of 7,154 employees, 620 (9.5 per cent) more than in the prior year. "Bechtle continued to exhibit above-average growth dynamics. Although the prior year had already been excellent, our largely organic growth was in the two-digit range, thereby by far outperforming the overall market," explains Dr. Thomas Olemotz, Chairman of the Executive Board of Bechtle AG. Broad Demand Strengthens IT System House & Managed Services The IT system house & managed services segment stepped up its revenue 11.2 per cent to EUR467.6 million (prior year: EUR420.6 million). As in the prior quarters, the domestic system houses were the growth drivers, surging 13.4 per cent to EUR426.7 million. The increase was driven by a broad demand on the part of industry customers. In the third quarter of 2015, segment operating income increased to EUR20.3 million (prior year: EUR19.6 million). The EBIT margin was 4.3 per cent (prior year: 4.6 per cent). IT E-Commerce Reports Outstanding Margin In the reporting period, the revenue in the IT e-commerce segment climbed 10.6 per cent to EUR218.6 million. The increase of the foreign e-commerce companies was especially high. They boosted their revenues by 14.2 per cent to EUR154.2 million. The German companies recorded growth from EUR62.8 million to EUR64.5 million. Year on year, EBIT climbed to EUR12.9 million, 22.8 per cent more than in the prior year. The margin increased from 5.3 per cent to an outstanding 5.9 per cent. Balance Sheet Reveals Strength and Independence As of 30 September, cash and cash equivalents including time deposits and securities amounted to a comfortable EUR133.7 million. The liquidity was thus higher than the total financial liabilities, i.e. Bechtle is free of debt and capable of financing future growth under its own steam whenever necessary. The equity ratio improved from 54.5 per cent to 57.4 per cent. The return on equity amounted to 10.7 per cent (prior year: 10.6 per cent). The extrapolated return on equity amounted to 14.6 per cent, also slightly above the figure of the prior year (14.5 per cent). The cash flow from operating activities reached EUR27.3 million within the nine-month period, compared to EUR11.6 million in the prior-year period. Number of Employees on the Rise As of the reporting date 30 September 2015, the Bechtle Group had a total of 7,154 employees, including 493 trainees. This represents a year-on-year increase of 620 employees, i.e. 9.5 per cent. The increase was caused by the acquisition of Modus Consult (180 employees) as well as new recruitment. On 1 September, 140 young people embarked on their training or integrated degree programme with Bechtle. The training ratio in Germany thus amounted to 8.0 per cent. Annual Forecast Concretised Bechtle anticipates that in 2015 as a whole, its revenue and earnings will significantly outperform the prior year. "The unexpectedly strong third quarter reinforces our confidence for the year as a whole. We expect growth in the high single-digit to low two-digit range, both for the revenue and for the earnings," says Dr. Thomas Olemotz. Bechtle KPIs for the Third Quarter and Nine-Month Period of 2015 <pre> Q3/2015 Q3/2014 +/- 9M/2015 9M/2014 +/- Revenue EURk 686,178 618,281 +11.0% 1,994,690 1,808,653 +10.3% Domestic EURk 491,136 439,085 +11.9% 1,371,049 1,237,849 +10.8% Abroad EURk 195,042 179,196 +8.8% 623,641 570,804 +9.3% IT system house EURk 467,567 420,559 +11.2% 1,321,736 1,195,825 +10.5% IT e-commerce EURk 218,611 197,722 +10.6% 672,954 612,828 +9.8% EBITDA EURk 40,069 35,789 +12.0% 101,896 91,575 +11.3% IT system house EURk 26,024 24,335 +6.9% 66,553 60,231 +10.5% IT e-commerce EURk 14,045 11,454 +22.6% 35,343 31,344 +12.8% EBIT EURk 33,186 30,040 +10.5% 82,354 74,543 +10.5% IT system house EURk 20,308 19,550 +3.9% 50,619 46,190 +9.6% IT e-commerce EURk 12,878 10,490 +22.8% 31,735 28,353 +11.9% EBIT margin % 4.8 4.9 4.1 4.1 EBT EURk 33,135 29,852 +11.0% 82,291 73,787 +11.5% EBT margin % 4.8 4.8 4.1 4.1 EAT EURk 23,615 21,146 +11.7% 58,069 52,370 +10.9% EPS EUR 1.13 1.00 +11.7% 2.77 2.49 +10.9% OCF EURk 10,197 12,514 27,277 11,638 employees(average) 7,011 6,436 +8.9% 6,831 6,374 +7.2% </pre> <pre> 30.09.15 30.09.14 +/- 30.09.15 31.12.14 +/- Liquidity* EURk 133,739 118,706 +12.7% 133,739 156,000 -14.3% Equity ratio % 57.4 59.4 57.4 54.5 Employees 7,154 6,534 +9.5% 7,154 6,572 +8.9% </pre> *including time deposits and securities *** The interim financial report for the third quarter of 2015 is available for download at www.bechtle.com/reports. About Bechtle As a one-stop IT provider, Bechtle AG is active with over 65 system houses in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and is one of Europe's leading online dealers for information technology, with subsidiaries in 14 countries. This combination forms the basis of Bechtle's trend-setting business model, which links IT services to the conventional marketing of IT products. Established in 1983 and headquartered in Neckarsulm, Germany, the company offers a one-stop, vendor-independent, comprehensive IT portfolio to its more than 75,000 customers from the fields of industry and trade, the public sector and the financial industry. Bechtle has been quoted at the stock exchange since 2000 and has been listed in the TecDAX technology index since 2004. In the fiscal year 2014, the group generated revenues of approximately EUR2.6 billion. Contact Bechtle AG Bechtle Platz 1 D-74172 Neckarsulm Germany Investor Relations Corporate Communication/Press Martin Link Sabine Brand martin.link@bechtle.com sabine.brand@bechtle.com Phone: +49 7132 981-4149 Phone: +49 7132 981-4115 Fax: +49 7132 981-4116 Fax: +49 7132 981-4116 --------------------------------------------------------------------- 11.11.2015 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. The DGAP Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases. Media archive at www.dgap-medientreff.de and www.dgap.de --------------------------------------------------------------------- Language: English Company: Bechtle AG Bechtle Platz 1 74172 Neckarsulm Germany Phone: +49 7132 981-0 Fax: +49 7132 981-8000 E-mail: ir@bechtle.com Internet: bechtle.com ISIN: DE0005158703 WKN: 515870 Listed: Regulated Market in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Regulated Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Hanover, Munich, Stuttgart End of News DGAP News Service --------------------------------------------------------------------- 410941 11.11.2015