Corporate | 9 November 2009 07:50
QSC AG / Quarter Results 09.11.2009 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a company of EquityStory AG. The issuer / publisher is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- QSC AG: Focus on strengthening profitability and financial position paying off - EBITDA rises to EUR 19.2 million in third quarter of 2009 - Net income reaches EUR 2.1 million - Positive free cash flow stands at EUR 2.6 million - Net debts planned to be eliminated entirely by year-end 2009 Cologne, November 9, 2009. QSC AG's strategy of focusing on strengthening its profitability and financial position in a very difficult economic environment is paying off. This has prompted the company to correspondingly revise its guidance for the full fiscal year: QSC now anticipates an EBITDA at the upper end of the EUR 68- to EUR 78-million corridor that had been announced at the outset of the year on revenues at the lower end of the EUR 420- to EUR 440-million corridor. At the same time, the company is also raising its free cash flow forecast: An anticipated free cash flow of at least EUR 12 million, instead of the previously announced figure of at least EUR 10 million, will enable net debts to be eliminated entirely by year-end. Moreover, the company continues to anticipate sustained net income. Business develops on positive note in third quarter of 2009 In the third quarter of 2009, QSC grew its EBITDA to EUR 19.2 million on revenues of EUR 104.4 million, as opposed to an EBITDA of EUR 18.3 million on revenues of EUR 103.6 million for the same quarter one year earlier; the EBITDA margin stood at 18 percent. During the first nine months, the company has succeeded in improving EBITDA by 31 percent to EUR 57.7 million on a five-percent rise in revenues to EUR 315.7 million. EBIT advanced to EUR 7.9 million during the first nine months of the current fiscal year, as opposed to EUR -1.8 million for the corresponding period the year before; quarterly EBIT rose to EUR 3.1 million, compared to EUR 2.6 million for the same quarter one year earlier. At EUR 2.1 million, QSC recorded its highest quarterly net income for the current fiscal year; after the first nine months of 2009, QSC has already earned net income of EUR 4.6 million. The year before, a net loss of EUR -3.5 million had still been incurred for this period. Sustained positive free cash flow QSC's good operative development, generating a corresponding cash flow from operating activities, combined with a significantly lower level of capital expenditures are enabling the company to earn a sustained positive free cash flow in the current fiscal year. This metric stood at EUR 2.6 million in the third quarter of 2009, while reaching a total of EUR 9.2 million for the first nine months. This has enabled QSC to reduce its net debts from EUR -12.2 million at the outset of the fiscal year to EUR -3.0 million as of September 30, 2009. Capital expenditures were down by one half in the third quarter of 2009 to EUR 10.3 million, as opposed to EUR 21.1 million for the same quarter one year earlier, when the picture had been characterized by a large number of new customers in ADSL2+ business and the resulting capital expenses for connecting them. QSC anticipates capital expenditures of less than EUR 50 million for the full 2009 fiscal year, as opposed to EUR 91.4 million the year before. 'Following the conclusion of the capital investment phase, we are now successfully focusing on marketing higher-margin products and services to enterprise customers, and are utilizing our nationwide Next Generation Network, in particular, for this purpose,' explains QSC Chief Executive Officer Dr. Bernd Schlobohm. 'Thanks to the expansion of our NGN early on and our unrivaled positioning in the German telecommunications market as a mid-size company serving mid-size companies, we have been able to grow our profitability and financial strength from quarter to quarter.'In EUR millions Q3 2009 Q3 2008 Q1-Q3 2009 Q1-Q3 2008 Revenues 104.4 103.6 315.7 301.3 - Wholesale/Reseller segment 62.8 60.2 189.4 168.5 - Products segment 22.8 25.1 70.4 78.3 - Managed Services segment 18.8 18.4 55.9 54.5 EBITDA 19.2 18.3 57.7 43.9 - Wholesale/Reseller segment 12.1 12.2 37.3 28.8 - Products segment 4.7 4.2 13.4 10.2 - Managed Services segment 2.5 1.9 7.1 4.9 EBIT 3.1 2.6 7.9 -1.8 Net income 2.1 2.1 4.6 -3.5 Free cash flow 2.6 -4.4 9.2 -23.6 CAPEX 10.3 21.1 34.7 69.4 Workforce 660 696 - -Queries to: QSC AG Arne Thull Investor Relations Phone: +49 221 6698-724 Fax: +49 221 6698-009 E-mail: invest@qsc.de Internet: www.qsc.de Notes: The nine-month report is available for download at www.qsc.de/en/qsc-ag/investor-relations.html. This corporate news contains forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and forecasts of future events by the management of QSC AG. Due to risks or mistaken assumptions, actual results may deviate substantially from those made in such forward-looking statements. The assumptions that may involve material deviations due to unforeseeable developments include, but are not limited to, the demand for our products and services, the competitive situation, the development, dissemination and technical performance of DSL technology and its prices, the development and dissemination of alternative broadband technologies and their respective prices, changes in respect of telecommunications regulation, legislation and adjudication, prices and timely availability of essential third-party services and products, the timely development of additional marketable value-added services, the ability to maintain and enlarge upon marketing and distribution agreements and to conclude new marketing and distribution agreements, the ability to obtain additional financing in the event that management's planning targets are not attained, the punctual and full payment of outstanding debts by sales partners and resellers of QSC AG, and the availability of sufficient skilled personnel. 09.11.2009 Financial News distributed by DGAP. Media archive at www.dgap-medientreff.de and www.dgap.de --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Language: English Company: QSC AG Mathias-Brüggen-Straße 55 50829 Köln Deutschland Phone: +49 (0)221 66 98-112 Fax: +49 (0)221 66 98-009 E-mail: invest@qsc.de Internet: www.qsc.de ISIN: DE0005137004 WKN: 513700 Indices: TecDAX Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in Berlin, München, Düsseldorf, Stuttgart End of News DGAP News-Service ---------------------------------------------------------------------------