Alleroed, 2017-05-30 07:55 CEST (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Board of Directors of Matas A/S today considered and adopted the annual report for the period 1 April 2016 – 31 March 2017.
“Affected partly by the implementation of our 2020 strategy, ‘The Ultimate Difference’, and partly by an adaptation to the rapidly changing Danish personal care market, 2016/17 was a busy and a challenging financial year. We are therefore very pleased that we successfully retained our market position and grew our revenue year on year. Total earnings were down relative to last year, affected mainly by higher costs as a result of the implementation of our 2020 strategy and intensified price competition in the personal care category. We closed the financial year with a satisfactory Q4 performance, growing both revenue and earnings over Q4 2015/16. Based on our 2016/17 performance, we propose a dividend of DKK 6.30 per share. We are furthermore planning to launch a new share buyback programme in the current financial year”, says Terje List, CEO.
Terje List adds: ”We are pleased that we have come so far with the implementation of our 2020 strategy. We have upgraded stores, implemented new pricing communications, expanded our Club Matas loyalty programme and launched a new app that already has more than 500,000 users. These initiatives have already translated into higher customer satisfaction rates and a larger average basket size. Based on these strategic measures, we expect to be able to retain our market position and lift earnings in 2017/18.”
| (DKKm) | 2016/17 | 2015/16 | Q4 2016/17 | Q4 2015/16 |
| Revenue | 3,463 | 3,426 | 779 | 765 |
| Gross profit | 1,612 | 1,605 | 361 | 364 |
| EBIT | 475 | 514 | 83 | 82 |
| EBITA | 551 | 590 | 102 | 101 |
| EBITA margin | 15.9% | 17.2% | 13.1% | 13.2% |
| Profit for the period | 339 | 365 | 53 | 54 |
| Adjusted profit after tax | 398 | 423 | 67 | 68 |
| Cash flow from operating activities | 483 | 567 | 73 | 92 |
| Earnings per share, DKK | 8.79 | 9.17 | 1.39 | 1.41 |
| Dividend per share (proposed), DKK | 6.30 | 6.30 | - | - |
Outlook
Our 2017/18 financial guidance for the Group is as follows:
- Underlying like-for-like revenue growth of 1-3% after taking a negative calendar effect into account.
- Improved EBITA relative to financial year 2016/17.
- Investments of around DKK 90-100 million (excluding store acquisitions).
Conference call
Matas will host a conference call for investors and analysts on 30 May 2017 at 10:00 a.m. (CET). The conference call may be accessed from our investor website, investor.matas.dk, where the presentation will also be available. Conference call access numbers for investors and analysts:
DK: +45 32 71 16 58
UK: +44 (0)20 3427 1901
US: +1 212 444 0895
Event code: 4358465
Please call 5-10 minutes before the conference call begins.
Link to webcast: http://edge.media-server.com/m/p/na86ygy7
General meeting
The annual general meeting will be held on Thursday, 29 June 2017 at 4:00 p.m. at the Tivoli Hotel & Congress Center, Arni Magnussons Gade 2-4, DK-1577 Copenhagen V, Denmark.
Contact persons
Terje List Anders T. Skole-Sørensen
CEO, tel +45 48 16 55 55 CFO, tel +45 48 16 55 55
Henrik Engberg Johannsen
Information Manager, tel +45 21 71 24 74
