Corporate | 10 August 2015 07:30

QSC posts positive turnaround in earnings in Q2 2015

QSC AG / Key word(s): Quarter Results

2015-08-10 / 07:30

QSC posts positive turnaround in earnings in Q2 2015

– At EUR 10.6 million, EBITDA up EUR 1.5 million on Q1 2015
– Free cash flow positive again at EUR 1.5 million
– Cost-cutting programme progressing better than expected
– 2015 forecast again reiterated

Cologne, 10 August 2015. QSC successfully turned around its earnings performance in the second quarter of 2015, with growth in all key earnings figures compared with the first quarter of 2015. This was substantially due to the cost-cutting programme initiated at the end of February 2015, whose measures are taking effect earlier than expected. The savings achieved as of 30 June 2015 thus already total more than EUR 4 million. Around 60 percent of this sum results from the staff cuts already initiated. As of 30 June 2015, employment termination agreements had already been reached with 180 employees. Overall, QSC plans to downsize its workforce by around 350 employees by the end of 2016.
QSC generated revenues of EUR 100.9 million in the second quarter of 2015, compared with EUR 109.4 million in the previous year’s period. This reduction, which was consistent with expectations, results from the ongoing reorganisation of the Outsourcing business and from a decline in Telecommunications revenues due to market and regulatory factors. By contrast, revenues increased significantly in the Consulting and Cloud business units. Thanks to orders received from new customers and extensions to existing contracts, new orders rose to EUR 55.6 million in the past quarter, up from EUR 23.6 million in the second quarter of 2014.

All key earnings figures up on first quarter of 2015

Gross profit improved for the second consecutive quarter, reaching EUR 27.2 million in the second quarter of 2015. Compared with the first quarter of 2015, EBITDA rose by EUR 1.5 million to EUR 10.6 million, EBIT by EUR 0.8 million to EUR -2.2 million and consolidated net income by EUR 0.7 million to EUR -2.7 million. In view of this turnaround in its earnings, QSC can reiterate its full-year forecast for 2015. Accordingly, the company expects to post revenues of more than EUR 400 million, EBITDA of more than EUR 40 million and a positive free cash flow. The cost-cutting programme will generate savings of more than EUR 10 million in the current year already. From 2017 onwards, the company has budgeted a sustainable reduction in its costs by at least EUR 25 million a year.

EUR million	Q2 2015	Q1 2015	Q4 2014	Q3 2014	Q2 2014
Revenues	100.9	104.7	106.4	106.6	109.4
Gross profit	27.2	27.1	20.3	26.1	27.8
EBITDA	10.6	9.1	2.3	8.8	10.5
EBIT	-2.2	-3.0	-29.2	-3.9	-2.0
Consolidated net income	-2.7	-3.4	-24.1	-6.2	-3.9
Free cash flow	1.5	-4.4	-38.2	3.7	5.0
Capital expenditure	3.9	3.5	10.8	6.3	8.2
Number of employees	1,585	1,666	1,697	1,709	1,712

Notes:
The 6-month report can be downloaded at www.qsc.de/en/qsc-ag/investor-relations.html . This Corporate News contains forward-looking statements that are based on current expectations and forecasts on the part of the management of QSC AG with regard to future events. Due to risks or erroneous assumptions, actual results may deviate materially from these forward-looking statements.

Contact for enquiries:
QSC AG
Arne Thull
Head of Investor Relations
Tel: +49 221 669-8724
Fax: +49 221 669-8009
E-mail: invest@qsc.de

2015-08-10 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP – a service of EQS Group AG.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

The DGAP Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases.
Media archive at www.dgap-medientreff.de and www.dgap.de

Language:	English
Company:	QSC AG
	Mathias-Brüggen-Straße 55
	50829 Köln
	Germany
Phone:	+49-221-6698-724
Fax:	+49-221-6698-009
E-mail:	invest@qsc.de
Internet:	www.qsc.de
ISIN:	DE0005137004
WKN:	513700
Indices:	TecDAX
Listed:	Regulated Market in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Regulated Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Hanover, Munich, Stuttgart

End of News DGAP News-Service

384931  2015-08-10