TAKKT finishes the challenging financial year 2019 in line with expectations and proposes an increased dividend

• Reported sales down 4.1 percent in the fourth quarter, organic sales development declined significantly as expected by minus 7.1 percent
• For the full year 2019, TAKKT was able to increase sales by 2.8 percent due to acquisitions and currency effects; organic minus of 1.4 percent
• EBITDA margin at 12.4 (12.7) percent
• Earnings per share at EUR 1.14 (1.34)
• Free TAKKT cash flow rises to EUR 107.1 (82.7) million
• Management Board proposes the payment of a total dividend of one euro per share to the Supervisory Board

Stuttgart, Germany, February 19, 2020. TAKKT increased sales in the year under review by 2.8 percent to EUR 1,214 (1,181) million, benefiting from contributions of acquisitions and positive currency effects. The phase-out of Hubert's European activities conversely had a slight negative impact. Organically (i.e., adjusted for these effects), sales decreased by 1.4 percent in comparison to the previous year. In Europe, the downturn of the business environment had an adverse effect on growth. In the U.S., the termination of a business relationship with a major Hubert customer had a negative impact of around 1.5 percentage points on the Group's organic growth, as expected. "Without the loss of the major Hubert customer, we would have been able to report slight organic growth in 2019. In view of the challenging conditions, this is a result in line with expectations," says CEO Felix Zimmermann.

The gross profit margin of 41.3 (41.5) percent remained virtually unchanged. EBITDA remained constant in comparison to the previous year at EUR 150.2 (150.1) million. In the year under review, as in the previous year, it was influenced by one-time effects. In the previous year, TAKKT realized income of EUR 4.9 million from a real estate sale and an expenditure for the recognition of a purchase price liability of EUR 2.0 million. In the year under review, one-off expenses of EUR 11.2 million were incurred as a result of adjustments of cost structures and first steps for the new organizational approach TAKKT 4.0. At the same time, TAKKT generated a one-time gain of EUR 2.8 million as a result of the income recognized from releasing an outstanding variable purchase price liability for XXLhoreca.

In addition, the adoption of the IFRS 16 accounting standard had a positive impact on the EBITDA margin of around one percentage point. This was lower than in the previous year at 12.4 (12.7) percent. Adjusted for the aforementioned one-off effects in both years and for the influence of IFRS 16, the EBITDA margin was less than one half percentage point below the previous year. "Due to disciplined cost management, we were able to limit the impact of the restrained sales development on our profitability," explains CFO Claude Tomaszewski.

Similar to the EBITDA, TAKKT cash flow of EUR 120.4 (120.8) million was roughly at the previous year's level. Mainly due to the release of inventory as opposed to a build-up in the previous year, the Group was able to significantly increase the free TAKKT cash flow to EUR 107.1 (82.7) million. Based on the business model's cash flow strength and the comparatively high equity ratio of 58.5 percent, the Management Board proposes the payment of a special dividend of EUR 0.45 in addition to the base dividend of EUR 0.55 per share to the Supervisory Board. This would correspond to a payout ratio of 87.7 (63.3) percent. Even after paying a dividend of this amount, TAKKT would have sufficient funds for acquisitions.

TAKKT expects a challenging first half of the current year. "The economic environment is still weak. However, we expect our business to regain momentum later in the year, following a difficult start," Zimmermann says, in estimating the outlook for 2020. On a strategic level, the focus will be on the further development and implementation of the new organizational approach TAKKT 4.0 organizational realignment. The Group will concentrate on two business models for two different customer types with clearly differentiated needs. In addition, TAKKT 4.0 includes a new allocation of responsibilities and functions at the relevant levels and the reinforcement of operational excellence to foster best practice solutions and implement continuous improvement processes. TAKKT will provide further details on the 2019 financial statements and the plans for the implementation of TAKKT 4.0, as well as an outlook for the future business development, in its publication of the 2019 annual report on March 26, 2020.

Conference call: February 19, 2020, at 2:00 p.m. (CET).
The login details to participate in the earnings call can be found under the following link: https://www.takkt.de/event/


Preliminary IFRS Figures for the TAKKT Group for the 2019 Fiscal Year
(in EUR million)

About TAKKT AG
TAKKT is the leading B2B distance seller for business equipment in Europe and North America. The Group is represented with its brands in more than 25 countries. The product range of the subsidiaries comprises more than a million products for the areas of plant and warehouse equipment, office furniture, transport packaging, display articles and equipment for the food service industry, hotel market and retailers. The TAKKT Group employs more than 2,500 people. The company is listed on the SDAX and Deutsche Börse Prime Standard.

Contacts:
Dr. Christian Warns Tel. +49 (0) 711 3465-8222
Giuseppe Palmieri Tel. +49 (0) 711 3465-8250

Email: [email protected]