Santa Fe consolidates its global position with growth and continued profitability improvements
EAC Group results are in line with the revised outlook published on 20 November 2014 in connection with the Q3 report and reflect underlying revenue growth from all business lines and regions as well as continued profitability improvements in the Santa Fe Group.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Revenue in the Santa Fe Group reached DKK 2,520m in 2014 representing an increase of 7.0 per cent in DKK and 8.5 per cent in local currencies over 2013. In Q4 alone revenue grew by 25.4 per cent in local currencies.
- Santa Fe Group EBITDA grew by 15.1 per cent in local currencies to DKK 116m representing an EBITDA margin of 4.6 per cent versus 4.4 per cent in 2013.
- EAC’s share of net profit for the year was DKK 327m. EAC’s share of net profit is negatively affected by DKK 288m non-cash impairment losses primarily related to goodwill and trademarks made in connection with the brand alignment process and the severe market set-back in Australia. Conversely, net profit is positively affected by a non-cash net profit from discontinued operations of DKK 600m related to the final closing of the sale of Plumrose.
- EAC’s Board of Directors proposes to the Annual General Meeting that no ordinary dividend is paid for 2014. The Board of Directors will present its thoughts on the future dividend policy at the Annual General Meeting on 26 March 2015.
- A merger between the EAC Parent Company and Santa Fe is ongoing, and at the Annual General Meeting further actions will be proposed to finalize the transformation, including the initiation of a generational handover of the Board of Directors.
OUTLOOK FOR 2015
- The EAC Group expects a modest revenue growth compared to 2014 (DKK 2,520m) with positive development in Asia, Europe and the Middle East, while Australia continues to be challenged.
- The EAC Group EBITDA before special items is expected to be in the range of DKK 100-120m (DKK 91m), based on the expected top-line growth combined with efficiency improvements, and countered by implementation cost of new contracts.
- Martin Thaysen, the new CEO of EAC and Santa Fe will assume his position as of 1 April 2015. Over the coming months, management will review further tactical and strategic opportunities to strengthen the Santa Fe Group and expects to update the full-year outlook accordingly by H1 2015.
Commenting on the annual results, EAC’s current Group President & CEO, Niels Henrik Jensen says:
“It is satisfactory to see that the Santa Fe Group has continued to grow and improve its profitability over the past four consecutive quarters and thereby further consolidated our position as a global leader in employee mobility. We have secured important new global contracts during 2014 and see a continued interesting pipeline of new tenders for the coming year. The deeply depressed Australian market, however, has given us significant set backs in realizing the desired financial potential of our global market position. As I am handing over management to our new CEO, it is in full confidence that he, together with the talented and dedicated Santa Fe team, will be able to solve these challenges going forward and bring the new consolidated Santa Fe to the next level.”
Commenting on the strategic priorities, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Henning Kruse Petersen says:
“Over the past years, we have built a comprehensive global business platform with a unique potential for growth and value creation. We look forward to continuing this journey with our new CEO and explore the further strategic opportunities of our business. To support these efforts we will be presenting a number of initiatives at the Annual General Meeting in March. These include an update of the composition of competences in the Board of Directors. We will propose the introduction of a share-based incentive programme for our management executives to drive performance, and we will take the final steps to merge EAC and Santa Fe into one global business brand to promote to customers and shareholders around the world.”
Webcast today at 11:00
EAC‘s Annual Report 2014 will be presented in a webcast followed by a conference call with financial analysts, investors and the press today at 11:00 CET on the company website www.eac.dk.
For additional information, please contact:
President & CEO Niels Henrik Jensen
+45 3525 4300
nhj@eac.dk
www.eac.dk
