Company announcement no. 24/2020
INCREASING FREIGHT EARNINGS
• Q3 freight earnings above 2019
• Efficiency enhanced by adaptation of operations and business structure to market changes
• Travel restrictions lowered passenger numbers significantly
• EBITDA 2020 outlook raised to DKK 2.5-2.7bn on 23 October
Q3 2020
• Both freight ferry and logistics delivered strong performance
• 70% drop in passenger numbers lowered profit significantly
OUTLOOK 2020 (changed 23 October)
• EBITDA of DKK 2.5-2.7bn
• Investments of around DKK 1.6bn, unchanged
”Our freight network is as expected proving to be very resilient. We continue to adapt operations to market changes and Brexit. I am pleased to see that all the hard work of our people has helped position us well for the future,” says Torben Carlsen, CEO.
| KEY FIGURES | |||||||
| 2020 | 2019 | 2019-20 | 2018-19 | 2019 | |||
| DKK m | Q3 | Q3 | Change, % | LTM | LTM | Change, % | FY |
| Revenue | 3,598 | 4,472 | -19.6 | 14,218 | 16,538 | -14.0 | 16,592 |
| EBITDA before special items | 846 | 1,195 | -29.2 | 2,734 | 3,708 | -26.3 | 3,633 |
| EBIT before special items | 388 | 718 | -46.0 | 826 | 1,920 | -57.0 | 1,751 |
| Profit before tax and special items | 324 | 647 | -49.9 | 570 | 1,714 | -66.7 | 1,472 |
| Profit before tax | 262 | 645 | -59.4 | 496 | 1,704 | -70.9 | 1,371 |
Revenue decreased 20% or DKK 0.9bn to DKK 3.6bn in Q3 and EBITDA before special items decreased 29% or DKK 349m to DKK 846m.
EBITDA for freight ferry and logistics activities was DKK 126m above 2019 in Q3. The ongoing adaptation of operations and the business structure to market conditions post Covid-19 has been instrumental in achieving the increase. Besides higher margins, some activities also succeeded in raising volumes.
The continued tightening of travel restrictions during Q3 lowered, on the other hand, the passenger result below expectations. In Q3, EBITDA for passenger services was thus DKK 445m below 2019. This result includes passenger services in three business units that provide such services – Passenger, Channel and Baltic Sea.
Outlook 2020
On 23 October 2020, the outlook for 2020 was raised as freight volumes have developed more positively than expected during and after Q3.
EBITDA before special items is expected to be DKK 2.5-2.7bn in 2020 up from the previous outlook of DKK 2.2-2.5bn included in the Q2 2020 report.
Uncertainty remains elevated and the outlook and its assumptions can still change significantly in the rest of the year. The outlook is detailed on page 8 in the full report.
Read the Q3 2020 Interim Report here:
https://www.dfds.com/en/about/investors/reports-and-presentations/q3-report-2020
12 November 2020. Conference call today at 10.00am CET
Access code: 30422623# Phone numbers to the call: DK +45 35445577, US +1 631 913 1422, UK +44 333 300 0804
Contact
Torben Carlsen, CEO +45 33 42 32 01
Karina Deacon, CFO +45 33 42 33 42
Søren Brøndholt Nielsen, IR +45 33 42 33 59
Gert Jakobsen, Communications +45 33 42 32 97
This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to Section 5-12 the Norwegian Securities Trading Act
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