BRUSSELS, Belgium, Feb. 25, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Arinso International NV (Euronext Brussels:ARIN):
FY 2003: Net profit grows 89%
-- Net Sales : EUR 130.4 million (+8%) -- Current EBIT : EUR 13.7 million (+3%) -- Net profit: EUR 6.2 million (+89%)
Q4 2003: Net sales grow 17%
-- Net Sales : EUR 36.9 million (+17%) -- Current EBIT : EUR 3.8 million (+38%) -- Net profit: EUR 1.9 million (+377%)
ARINSO International is proud to announce very strong financials over the last quarter of 2003 and indeed over the full year. Consolidated 2003 net sales exceed EUR 130 million, a growth of 8% compared to 2002. Although market conditions remain challenging, ARINSO witnesses renewed market activity across most regions -- leading to strong topline growth and stable & sustainable margins.
Over the full year, the rise of the EUR against USD and GBP continued to have a negative effect on the group's reported figures. Stable exchange rates would have meant a robust 12% growth in terms of 2003 group sales. ARINSO's US & UK operations performed particularly well with sales growth in local currency of 44% and 45% respectively.
ARINSO reports current EBIT of EUR 13.7 million -- a stable EBIT margin of 10.5%. Current profit for the year was EUR 10.2 million (+18%), while net profit reached EUR 6.2 million -- almost double the profit of 2002.
As of 2004 ARINSO will report under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). In order to have comparative figures IFRS results have been prepared for 2003. The impact on the consolidated figures is very limited. Under IFRS net sales amounted to EUR 130.4 million, with EUR 13.2 million EBIT and EUR 5.6 million net profit -- mainly due to the different treatment of deferred taxes.
At the start of the year, ARINSO expected to grow both topline and bottomline. Clearly, the company outperformed its guidance: with the exception of Q2, the growth rate of both net sales and net profit increased from quarter to quarter. ARINSO's Board of Directors is therefore pleased with the group's performance in 2003 -- and is confident that 2004 again will be a year of growth on both reporting lines.
Full year investments in HR BPO Business Development exceeded EUR 4.2 million. Thanks to these investments ARINSO People Services is now firmly established as an important player in HR Services. With market activity in HR Outsourcing increasing on both sides of the Atlantic, ARINSO is confident that continued investments in 2004 will generate additional outsourcing contracts. The major pan-European HR Services contract that ARINSO announced in November is expected to strengthen ARINSO's visibility in the HR outsourcing space in Europe. The global HRO deal announced in January constitutes a strong business case towards US headquarters wanting to leverage best practices worldwide.
As part of this investment, ARINSO has developed a leading edge HR Service Delivery technology called the ARINSO HR WORKSPACE(tm). It allows collaborative HR services in a Hub & Spokes design for geographically dispersed HR centers. ARINSO has built this proprietary service center platform in a hosted model as an application service. The HR Workspace(tm) is pivotal in ARINSO's European & global HR Services model and supports HR services centers operated by clients. In 2004, ARINSO will look at various distribution channels to license out this platform to partners.
ARINSO's strong financials confirm the group's reputation as a stable and long-term HR Services partner. For many employers, ARINSO is able to reduce capital expenditure in HR Technology -- while at the same time offering lower operational costs over the duration of the contract. ARINSO's unique focus on HR, its global presence and strong reference list also explain why large and international employers are considering long-term commitments with our company.
CONSOLIDATED INCOME STATEMENT (Belgian GAAP - audited) Full year 2003 vs 2002
(in '000 EUR) FY 2003 FY 2002
Net Sales 130,350 120,808 + 7.9%
Operating Profit 9,710 9,848
Depreciation consolidation goodwill 3,985 3,447
EBIT (current) 13,695 13,295 + 3.0%
EBIT Margin (current) 10.5% 11.0%
Financial Result 615 356
Financial Income 2,250 2,271
Financial Charges -- current -1,635 -631
Financial Charges -- non current -1,284
Result on ordinary activities 10,325 10,204
Extraordinary Result -5 -624
Extraordinary Income 12 69
Extraordinary Charges -17 -693
Result before taxes 10,320 9,580
Taxation -4,159 -6,312
Current result: Net result after 10,151 8,623 + 17.7%
taxes, before non current items,
depreciation on consolidation
goodwill and extraordinary results
Net result 6,161 3,268 + 88.5%
Results per share 2003 2002
Number of shares 14,667,823 14,550,823
Result on ordinary activities 0.70 EUR 0.70 EUR
Current result 0.69 EUR 0.59 EUR
Current result after depreciation of
consolidation goodwill 0.42 EUR 0.36 EUR
Net result 0.42 EUR 0.22 EUR
The statutory auditor, Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler Bedrijfsrevisoren, represented by P.P. Berger, confirms that his audit work, which is substantially completed, has not revealed any significant matters, requiring adjustment to the accounting information included in the press release.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET 2003 (Belgian GAAP -- audited)
(in '000 EUR) 31/12/2003 31/12/2002
Consolidation Goodwill 7,168 10,987
Fixed Assets (non financial) 2,303 2,349
Financial Fixed Assets 673 665
Amounts Receivable & Work in Progress 49,106 35,054
Long term 2,440 229
Short term 46,666 34,825
Cash and cash equivalents 47,207 49,351
Deferred Charges and Accrued Income 1,311 1,261
Total Assets 107,768 99,667
Equity 77,049 71,186
Minority interests 2 2
Provisions for Risks and Charges 315 832
Deferred Taxes 249 267
Financial Debts 14 14
Amounts Payable - Suppliers 9,801 9,675
Advances 1,145 248
Other Amounts Payable 17,871 16,904
Accrued Charges and Deferred Income 1,322 539
Total liabilities 107,768 99,667
Acid Ratio 3.16 3.12
Solvency 71.5% 71.4%
BALANCE SHEET The ARINSO consolidated balance sheet per 31 Dec 2003 remains extremely solid, with a solvency ratio (equity vs. total assets) of 72%, no financial debts and a cash position in excess of EUR 47 million, allowing the Company to fulfill its strategic ambitions.
CASH FLOW
Operating activities in 2003 generated a gross cash flow of EUR 15.1 million versus EUR 14.5 million in 2002. This allowed ARINSO to finance the increased net working capital, related to the deployment of multi year outsourcing contracts, without having to appeal to invested or lended funds. Investing and financing activities resulted in net cash out of EUR 1 million. At year end, ARINSO has EUR 47.2 million in cash and cash equivalents, including EUR 7.5 million in own shares.
STAFFING
Per 31 Dec 2003, ARINSO International employed 1,403 staff in 22 countries. Compared to 2002, this is an increase of 18%. This increase includes 78 staff who transferred through HR outsourcing contracts.
CONSOLIDATED INCOME STATEMENT (Belgian GAAP -- audited) Q4 of 2003 vs Q4 of 2002
(in '000 EUR) 4Q 2003 4Q 2002
Net Sales 36,856 31,524 + 16.9%
Operating Profit 2,829 1,745
Depreciation consolidation goodwill 999 1,037
EBIT (current) 3,828 2,782 + 37.6%
EBIT Margin (current) 10.4% 8.8%
Financial Result -48 807
Financial Income 857 1,017
Financial Cost -- current -905 -210
Financial Cost -- non current
Result on ordinary activities 2,781 2,552
Extraordinary Result -3 -180
Result before taxes 2,778 2,372
Taxation -902 -1,977
Current result: Net result after 2,878 1,612 + 78.5%
taxes, before non current items,
depreciation on consolidation
goodwill and extraordinary results
Net result 1,876 395 + 374.9%
4Q Results per share 2003 2002
Number of shares 14,667,823 14,550,823
Result on ordinary activities 0.19 EUR 0.18 EUR
Current result 0.20 EUR 0.11 EUR
Current result after depreciation of
consolidation goodwill 0.13 EUR 0.04 EUR
Net result 0.13 EUR 0.03 EUR
About ARINSO International
ARINSO International (Euronext Brussels:ARIN) is a global HR Services partner offering comprehensive HR business solutions to the world's largest employers. ARINSO is dedicated to HR Excellence through Strategic Consultancy, Outsourcing Services and Technology Integration Services.
ARINSO was founded in 1994 and currently employs more than 1,400 staff in 22 countries: Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, Finland, Poland, US, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand & Morocco.
Information for Shareholders:
29 Apr 2004 Annual Shareholders Meeting (10h -- Anderlecht) 25 May 2004 1Q2004 Results (before trading) 31 Aug 2004 1H2004 Results (before trading) 16 Nov 2004 3Q2004 Results (before trading) 28 Feb 2005 Full 2004 Results (before trading)
Update on the ARINSO share buy-back program launched on 30 April 2003: Per 31 December 2003 ARINSO owned 648,309 of its outstanding shares, i.e. 4.4%. The ARINSO shareholders & board have authorized the company to buy up to 10 % of the existing shares.
The 2003 Annual Report will be available from www.arinso.com as of 31 March 2004. Should you wish to be on our distribution list for press releases, please inform invest@arinso.com
Financial Service:
Fortis Bank Montagne du Parc 3 1000 Bruxelles
The pdf-version of the report including tables can be downloaded from the enclosed link: http://hugin.info/133950/R/935731/129364.pdf