Telekom Austria Group: Strong Cost Control Absorbs Revenue Pressure and Limits EBITDA Decline in the First Quarter 2010
By Telekom Austria Group, PRNETuesday, May 11, 2010
VIENNA, Austria, May 12, 2010 -
- Stabilization of Fixed Net subscriber base with just 0.8% lines lost - Mobile Communication continues to grow its subscriber base with a 6.0% increase to 19.0 million customers - Revenues decline by 5.9% to EUR 1,126.0 million primarily driven by lower revenues in domestic operations and Bulgaria - Cost reductions absorb half of the revenue pressure and limit EBITDA decline to 6.4% - Free cash flow increases by almost 26% to EUR 165.7 million - Outlook 2010 reiterated, excluding effects from merger of domestic businesses - Dividend per share floor of 75 cents reiterated for 2010-2012
in EUR million 1Q 10 1Q 09 % change Revenues 1,126.0 1,197.1 -5.9% EBITDA 425.9 454.8 -6.4% Operating income 166.3 180.1 -7.7% Net income 91.2 85.3 6.9% Earnings per share (in EUR) 0.21 0.19 6.7% Free cash flow per share (in EUR) 0.37 0.30 25.8% Capital expenditures 136.4 116.0 17.6% in EUR million March 31, 10 Dec. 31, 09 Net debt 3,450.2 3,614.8 -4.6% Net debt/EBITDA (12 months) 2.0x 2.0x
All financial figures are based on IFRS; if not stated otherwise, all
comparisons are given year-on-year. EBITDA is defined as net income excluding
financial result, income tax expense, depreciation and amortization. This
equals operating income before depreciation, amortization and impairment
charges.
Group Review
Vienna, May 12, 2010 - The Telekom Austria Group (VSE: TKA, OTC US:
TKAGY) today announced its results for the first quarter ending March 31,
2010.
Commenting on the Company's performance, Dr. Hannes Ametsreiter, Telekom
Austria Group CEO, said: "This quarter's results demonstrate that direct
actions taken in both Fixed Net segment and Mobile Communications have
delivered tangible results, countering competitive pressures and the
challenging economic environment. Fixed Net trends are improving. In the
Mobile Communication segment the subscriber base has grown to 19 million
customers. Furthermore I am pleased that our plan to build A1 TA into a
convergent player is progressing well. Throughout the Group we have
demonstrated our ability to control costs hence our EBITDA margin has
remained stable. All of this gives us confidence to reiterate our outlook
including the DPS floor of EUR 0.75 until 2012".
Summary
In the first quarter of 2010 revenues decreased by 5.9% to EUR 1,126.0
million driven by lower revenues from domestic operations and Bulgaria. Cost
reductions in the Mobile Communication segment absorbed half of the pressure
on revenues and limited EBITDA declined to 6.4%. EBITDA was EUR 425.9 million
in 1Q 10. Operating income fell by 7.7% to EUR 166.3 million. Net income
increased from EUR 85.3 million by 6.9% to EUR 91.2 million mainly due to
lower depreciation and amortization as well as lower interest expenses. While
the ongoing reduction of line losses allowed a stabilization of operating
trends in the Fixed Net segment, Mobile Communication continues to be
impacted by a fierce competitive environment combined with regulative
interventions.
Total capital expenditures increased to EUR 136.4 million in 1Q 10
compared to a particular low amount of EUR 116.0 million in 1Q 09. The
increase was mainly driven by investments in the core net of the Fixed Net
segment. Net debt declined by 4.6% to EUR 3,450.2 million at the end of March
2010 compared to 3,614.8 million at year-end 2009. Net debt to EBITDA (last
12 months) was 2.0x.
Market Environment
Telekom Austria Group operates in highly competitive environments both in
the fixed net and mobile communications markets. The resulting negative
impact on pricing levels is further intensified by regulatory measures in
both segments. Continuous assessments of cost structures and improvements to
productivity and operating efficiency are therefore essential to the success
of Telekom Austria Group.
While the sustained migration of Fixed Net voice customers to the Mobile
Communication segment has been the main challenge for several years, mobile
broadband continues to make steady inroads into the market for internet
access. However, following the introduction of attractive product bundles,
line loss decelerated significantly during recent quarters. The Fixed Net
segment continues to focus on the protection of cash flows by offering a
market-oriented product portfolio and attractive pricing schemes as well as a
comprehensive cost-cutting program. Innovative products like aonTV and
attractive product bundles such as aonKombi and aonSuperKombi continued to be
successful.
The Mobile Communication segment continued to show subscriber growth.
Austria is regarded as a highly developed mobile communications market
characterized by fierce competition and persistent price pressure. With
respect to international activities the greenfield operations VIP operator
and Vip mobile were able to improve their EBITDA and increase ARPU in 1Q 2010
compared to 1Q 2009 despite the difficult market environment in Eastern
Europe. However, fierce competition and the economic slowdown in the markets
led to price cuts and declining ARPUs on a segment level.
In summary, the above mentioned challenging and competitive economic
environment persists in all markets in which the Telekom Austria Group
operates. Regulation remains an important external disrupting factor in all
markets primarily due to its impact on roaming tariffs and termination
charges.
Outlook 2010: 75 Cents DPS Floor Reiterated until 2012
Telekom Austria Group expects the challenging environment to persist in
2010. This environment is characterized by the concurrence of several
negative external effects with the impact of weak economies. The negative
external effects mainly encompass ongoing fixed-to-mobile substitution in
Austria, continued price pressure in Telekom Austria Group's major markets
and the effect from regulatory-induced lower roaming prices as well as
reduced mobile termination rates in Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia and Slovenia.
Furthermore, the introduction of taxes levied on mobile communication
services in Croatia and the Republic of Serbia poses an additional burden.
For the financial year 2010, revenues are expected to amount to
approximately EUR 4.7 billion. The company has already initiated significant
cost reduction programs in both segments addressing both staff and non-staff
related expenses to mitigate the impact from lower revenues. Including the
expected cost savings, EBITDA should reach about EUR 1.6 billion. Depending
on investments for the migration to an All-IP based voice network in the
Fixed Net segment, capital expenditures of the Telekom Austria Group are
forecasted to reach approximately EUR 800 million. This amount does not
reflect a material roll-out of glass fiber which is not expected to start in
2010.
Operating Free Cash Flow remains the primary focus of the management and
is expected to come out at about EUR 800 million. Telekom Austria Group
reiterates its intention to distribute the higher of 65% of the annual net
income or at least 75 cents per share as dividend until 2012. The Management
Board remains committed to its capital allocation policy including returning
excess cash to shareholders via share buy-backs within the 1.8x-2.0x net
debt/EBITDA target balance sheet structure and provided stability in its main
foreign currencies and operations. Hence, in light of the ongoing challenging
operating environment share buyback is not expected to start in 2010.
This outlook is given on a constant currency basis and does not yet
include the impact of the announced integration of Fixed Net and Mobile
Communication activities in Austria.
Outlook 10* Outlook 10* as of May 12 as of Feb. 24 Telekom Austria Group Revenues ~ EUR 4.7 bn ~ EUR 4.7 bn EBITDA ~ EUR 1.6 bn ~ EUR 1.6 bn Capital ~ EUR 0.8 bn ~ EUR 0.8 bn expenditures Operating Free Cash Flow ~ EUR 0.8 bn ~ EUR 0.8 bn 65% of net income, 65% of net income, DPS DPS of 75 cents of 75 cents minimum Dividend minimum
*Excluding the impact of the merger of domestic operations
Further Information
For more detailed information about the full-year 2009 please refer to
the corresponding report on Telekom Austria Group's website at
www.telekomaustria.com/interim_reports
Disclaimer:
This news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks
and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements are usually accompanied
by words such as "believe," "intend," "anticipate," "plan," "expect" and
similar expressions. Actual results may differ materially from those
anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a number of
factors. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties.
A number of important factors could cause actual results or outcomes to
differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statement.
These factors include, but are not limited to, the following:
- the level of demand for telecommunications services or equipment, particularly with regard to access lines, traffic, bandwidth and new products; - competitive forces in liberalized markets, including pricing pressures, technological developments, alternative routing developments and new access technologies, and our ability to retain market share in the face of competition from existing and new market entrants; - the effects of our tariff reduction or other marketing initiatives; - the regulatory developments and changes, including the levels of tariffs, the terms of interconnection, unbundling of access lines and international settlement arrangements; - our ability to achieve cost savings and realize productivity improvements; - the success of new business, operating and financial initiatives, many of which involve start-up costs, and new systems and applications, particularly with regard to the integration of service offerings; - our ability to secure the licenses we need to offer new services and the cost of these licenses and related network infrastructure build-outs; - the progress of our domestic and international investments, joint ventures and alliances - the impact of our new business strategies and transformation program; - the availability, terms and deployment of capital and the impact of regulatory and competitive developments on capital expenditures; - the outcome of litigation in which we are involved; - the level of demand in the market for our shares which can affect our business strategies; - changes in the law including regulatory, civil servants and social security law, including pensions and tax law; and general economic conditions, government and regulatory policies, and business conditions in the markets we serve.
Contacts: Mag. Elisabeth Mattes Telekom Austria Group Tel.: +43-664-331-2730 E-Mail: elisabeth.mattes@telekom.at Telekom Austria Group Mag. Peter Zydek Group Spokeswoman Investor Relations Tel.: +43(0)590591-19001 E-Mail: peter.zydek@telekom.at
Mag. Elisabeth Mattes, Telekom Austria Group, Tel.: +43-664-331-2730, E-Mail: elisabeth.mattes at telekom.at Telekom Austria Group ; Mag. Peter Zydek, Group Spokeswoman, Investor Relations, Tel.: +43(0)590591-19001, E-Mail: peter.zydek at telekom.at
Tags: Austria, May 12, Telekom Austria Group, vienna