Press release

Francotyp-Postalia with strong growth in revenue and earnings in the first half of 2022

Berlin, September 1, 2022 – Francotyp-Postalia Holding AG (ISIN DE000FPH9000) significantly increased its revenue and earnings in the first six months of fiscal year 2022. Group revenue rose by 28.2% to EUR 127.6 million in the first half of the year, compared with EUR 99.5 million in the same period of the previous year. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose by 76.5% to EUR 16.3 million, compared to EUR 9.2 million in the same period of the previous year; the EBITDA margin thus increased to 12.8% compared to 9.3% in the previous year.

The FUTURE@FP transformation program launched in spring 2021 is thus sustainably reflected in the results, with the company also recording positive special effects in the first half of the year. Free cash flow increased to EUR 7.4 million compared to EUR 4.0 million in the same period of the previous year.

Sales in the Digital Business Solutions business unit recorded revenue growth of 31.8% to EUR 13.4 million in the reporting period, compared with EUR 10.2 million in the previous year. The focus on business models with a clear value proposition for customers and significant scaling potential is paying off. The business unit benefited both from successful sales of the previous year with recurring revenues in the reporting period and from the further increase in new customer acquisition. In addition, the area of De-Mail / eJustice communication is positively impacted by growing customer demand and partly by the exit of a competitor from the De-Mail market.

Revenue in the Mailing, Shipping & Office Solutions business unit increased by 22.6% to EUR 74.2 million compared with EUR 60.4 million in the previous year. FP recorded higher revenue from machine sales, consumables and services, as well as additional revenue from the postage rate change in Germany. In addition, EUR 6.6 million was included for the first time as revenue contribution from the newly acquired operating companies of the Azolver Group. The development of exchange rates resulted in a positive effect on revenue of EUR 2.8 million (negative effect of EUR 2.3 million in the previous year). Based on the existing product range, which is geared to the small mail volume segment, and thanks to the high proportion of recurring revenue, the Company is well positioned in the franking business. FP has further expanded its market position with the acquisition of the operating companies of the Azolver Group.

Revenue in the Mail Services business unit relating to the collection, franking and consolidation of business mail rose by 38.5% to EUR 40.0 million, compared with EUR 28.9 million in the same period of the previous year. The volume of mail processed increased significantly compared with the same period of the previous year. Revenue was higher than expected usual due to a higher proportion of franking resulting from Corona-related staff shortages at customers and one-off mailings in the first half of the year. In addition, the company benefited from the postage increase at the beginning of 2022.

Transformation program FUTURE@FP with positive effects

FP CEO Carsten Lind says: "Our company is developing in the right direction. The figures show a sustained positive trend, even taking into account that we benefited from special effects in the first half of the year. The transformation program FUTURE@FP is paying off and we are successfully positioning the company for the future. We will therefore continue to consistently pursue our transformation process."

CFO Martin Geisel adds: "We have significantly improved both revenue and earnings. Our measures are reflected in the key figures."

Earnings per share increased to EUR 0.32

In the first six months of 2022, the FP Group generated EBITDA of EUR 16.3 million compared with EUR 9.2 million in the same period of the previous year. This corresponds to an increase of 76.5%. The EBITDA margin rose to 12.8% (in the same period of the previous year: 9.3%). The increase in revenue in all business units combined with a reduced cost base, the effects of the postage rate change, and the currency gains all had a positive impact on the development of earnings.

Due to the acquisition of the operating companies of the Azolver Group, personnel expenses increased by 5.1% to EUR 31.0 million, compared with EUR 29.5 million in the previous year. The personnel expense ratio continued to decline significantly to 24.3% (previous year: 29.7%). The cost of materials increased by 29.7% to
EUR 64.6 million in the first six months of 2022, compared with EUR 49.8 million in the previous year, primarily as a result of the increase in sales and the higher proportion of postage. The cost of materials ratio increased only slightly to 50.6% (previous year: 50.0%). Other operating expenses increased by 19.6% year-on-year to EUR 19.1 million in the first half of 2022.

Depreciation, amortization and impairment losses increased slightly by 4.8% to EUR 9.9 million in the first six months of 2022 (previous year: EUR 9.4 million). EBIT thus improved significantly to EUR 6.4 million compared to EUR -0.2 million in the previous year. As a result of the significant improvement in EBIT, net profit was EUR 5.2 million compared to EUR 0.6 million in the prior-year period. Earnings per share (EPS) increased to 0.32 euros compared to 0.04 euros a year earlier.

Forecast for 2022 confirmed

2022, the FP Group will continue to drive forward the transformation. The current development confirms to the company that the FUTURE@FP program is heading in the right direction. Particularly with the acquisition of the operating companies of the Azolver Group at the end of March 2022, the company expects Group revenue to develop significantly positively in fiscal year 2022. The Management Board expects a range of EUR 229 to 237 million, compared with EUR 203.7 million in the previous year. This includes organic revenue growth of 3-6% and growth from the acquisition of the operating companies of the Azolver Group. The measures to sustainably improve profitability will almost take full effect in fiscal 2022. Depending on the development of revenue, the Management Board therefore expects EBITDA of between EUR 24 million and EUR 28 million, corresponding to an EBITDA margin of between 10.5% and 11.8%. As before, this forecast does not take into account any exchange rate effects.

In terms of revenue, the Management Board expects to reach the upper end of the range. Taking into account other possible positive currency effects (already EUR 2.8 million in the first half of the year), the expected revenue level is therefore above EUR 240 million. As the first and second quarters were better than planned, mainly due to extraordinary effects, the Management Board expects business to normalize in the second half of 2022. This applies in particular to revenue development as a result of the postage rate change in the first quarter and in the Mail Services business unit. For this reason, the Management Board has not raised the forecast for the full year. In addition, the macroeconomic and geopolitical environment has recently deteriorated and the originally positive outlook for economic growth has in some cases been significantly reduced in recent months. In particular, sharp increases in energy and raw material prices are weighing on the economy in general, and thus also to some extent on FP's profitability. An unfavorable economic environment may also have a negative impact on FP's future business performance.

Key figures at a glance:

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Disclaimer:

Statements in this press release relating to the future development and forecasts of the Group are based on our careful assessment of future events. Any negative macroeconomic developments beyond this may cause actual results for fiscal 2022 to differ from the forecast figures.

About Francotyp-Postalia:

Francotyp-Postalia Holding AG, a listed company based in Berlin, is the holding company of the globally operating FP Group (FP). FP is an expert in solutions that make office and work life easier and more efficient. FP has the following business units: Digital Business Solutions, Mailing, Shipping & Office Solutions and Mail Services. In the Digital Business Solutions business unit, FP optimises customers’ business processes and offers solutions such as electronic signatures, hybrid mail, input/output management for physical and digital documents and the data-driven automation of complex business processes. In the Mailing, Shipping & Office Solutions business unit, FP is the world’s third-largest provider of mailing systems and is also the market leader in Germany, Austria, Scandinavia and Italy. FP has subsidiaries based in 15 countries and is represented by its own trading network in many other countries. In the Mail Services business unit, FP offers the consolidation of business mail and is among the leading providers in Germany. In 2021, FP generated revenue of more than EUR 200 million.