=------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
  Corporate news transmitted by euro adhoc with the aim of a Europe-wide 
  distribution. The issuer is responsible for the content of this announcement. 
=------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
 
Annual Result 
 
Vienna, 12 March 2021 - 
 
2020 impacted by COVID-19 
 
* Letter Mail volume decline of 7 %, 12 % drop in Direct Mail volumes 
* 30 % rise in Austrian parcel volumes, CEE/SEE parcels up by 27 %, 37 % 
  increase in Turkey 
 
 
Revenue 2020 increased by 8.3 % 
 
* Revenue growth of 8.3 % to EUR 2,189.2m (+3.3 % excl. Aras Kargo) 
* Strong parcel growth (+44.4 %) offsets decline in Letter Mail and Direct Mail 
  (-7.4 %) 
 
 
Earnings below prior-year level 
 
* EBITDA down by 5.0 % to EUR 302.8m 
* EBIT of the logistics business 2020 (excl. Retail & Bank Division) of EUR 
  204.4m 
 
  o Mail down by 16.4 % to EUR 164.4m 
  o Parcel & Logistics up by 94.5 % to EUR 73.5m 
 
* Group EBIT 2020 reduced by 19.9 % to EUR 160.6m 
 
  o Loss of EUR 43.8m in the Retail & Bank Division due to start-up costs for 
    bank99 
 
 
 
Cash flow reduced and balance sheet extended 
 
* Gross cash flow down by 2.0 % and operating free cash flow down by 16.5 % to 
  prior-year level 
* Increased balance sheet total of EUR 2,680.2m (+31.2 %) due to launch of 
  bank99 
* Dividend proposal of EUR 1.60 per share (payout of 94 % of net profit) 
 
 
Positive outlook 2021 
 
* Revenue 2021 up by 8 % to 10 % expected 
* Targeted earnings (EBIT) increase of at least 10 % (EBIT 2020: EUR 161m) 
* Continuation of capacity expansion programme: +30 % sorting capacity by 2022 
 
 
2020 was a huge challenge for many companies across the globe, including 
Austrian Post. In particular, the COVID-19 pandemic at the beginning of 2020 and 
the following temporary lockdown regulations and restrictions have left their 
mark on Austrian Post and of its customers, both in social and economic terms. 
The market environment has somewhat improved in the third and fourth quarters. 
Many companies managed to adapt to the difficult conditions. "We succeeded in 
maintaining the safety and health of employees as well as the business 
performance of Austrian Post. Against the backdrop of current framework 
conditions, the results in the past financial year can be considered as entirely 
satisfactory" says CEO Georg Pölzl. Austrian Post Group revenue rose by 8.3 % to 
EUR 2,189.2m in 2020. This revenue increase can be attributed to the good 
development in the parcel business (+44.4 %): while the Mail Division registered 
a disproportionately drop in revenue of 7.4 % related to COVID-19, the Parcel & 
Logistics Division managed to record further volume gains in the Austrian market 
(parcel volume +30 %), in South East and Eastern Europe (parcel volume +27 %) as 
well as in the newly consolidated Turkish market (parcel volume +37 %). 
 
In terms of earnings, a good fourth quarter also enabled the company to end 2020 
on a conciliatory note. Fourth-quarter EBIT reached a level of EUR 79.2m 
compared to EUR 70.5m last year. Accordingly, EBIT in 2020 amounted to EUR 
160.6m, down by 19.9 % from EUR 200.6m in 2019. The start-up costs of bank99 in 
the Retail & Bank Division, which was launched in April 2020, accounted for a 
substantial share of the decline. Disregarding the negative earnings 
contribution of the Retail & Bank Division, EBIT of the logistics business was 
almost stable at EUR 204.4m for the 2020 financial year. EBITDA for the 2020 
financial year fell by 5.0 % to EUR 302.8m. 
 
Earnings per share equalled to EUR 1.75 in 2020. On the basis of Austrian Post's 
solid performance and balance sheet strength, it will be proposed to the Annual 
General Meeting scheduled for 15 April 2021 to once again approve the payout of 
an attractive dividend of EUR 1.60 per share, corresponding to a payout ratio of 
94 % of the net profit and a dividend yield of 5.6 % at the closing share price 
on 31 December 2020. 
 
Austrian Post aims for both revenue and earnings growth in 2021. The objective 
is to continue further improving despite the reduced visibility and higher 
volatility in the market. Austrian Post expects revenue growth of 8 % to 10 % 
and an earnings improvement of 10 %. Moreover, in 2021 it remains important to 
continue the logistics capacity expansion programme. Sorting capacity in Austria 
should be expanded by another 30 % by the end of 2022. The objective of Austrian 
Post is to strengthen its leadership position in terms of service quality as 
well as efficiency and speed. 
 
"Our special thanks go to the employees and the partners of Austrian Post. All 
of them were working strenuously on a daily basis during the challenging fourth 
quarter to ensure that Austrian Post customers receive their parcels on time in 
spite of record parcel volumes", states Georg Pölzl. "This is the basis for our 
quality leadership. Together we will manage to continue being the preferred 
partner of our customers", concludes Pölzl. 
 
You can find the complete version of the outlook as well as detailed information 
(excerpts) from the Management Report for the financial year of 2020 starting on 
page 4. The entire report is available on the Internet under post.at/ir in the 
Reporting-Download Centre. 
 
 
KEY Figures 
 
                                                  Change 
EUR m                            2019    2020     %       EUR m  Q4 2019 Q4 2020 
Revenue                          2,021.6 2,189.2  8.3 %   167.6  559.3   691.3 
Mail1                            1,320.1 1,222.7  -7.4 %  -97.4  349.9   339.4 
Parcel & Logistics1              632.5   913.6    44.4 %  281.1  195.2   336.9 
Retail & Bank1                   80.5    64.7     -19.7 % -15.8  17.1    18.9 
Corporate/Consolidation1         -11.5   -11.7    -2.0 %  -0.2   -2.9    -3.9 
Other operating income           131.5   64.1     -51.2 % -67.4  17.6    20.1 
Raw materials, cons. and serv.   -495.7  -596.2   -20.3 % -100.5 -162.2  -217.9 
used 
Staff costs                      -976.7  -1,041.4 -6.6 %  -64.7  -232.0  -295.2 
Other operating expenses         -361.3  -314.4   13.0 %  46.8   -79.7   -75.6 
Results from financial assets    -0.6    1.5      >100 %  2.2    -0.4    0.1 
acc. for using the equity method 
EBITDA                           318.7   302.8    -5.0 %  -15.9  102.7   122.9 
Depreciation, amort., impairment -118.1  -142.2   -20.4 % -24.1  -32.2   -43.7 
EBIT                             200.6   160.6    -19.9 % -40.0  70.5    79.2 
Mail1                            196.7   164.4    -16.4 % -32.3  67.8    57.7 
Parcel & Logistics1              37.8    73.5     94.5 %  35.7   16.4    40.9 
Retail & Bank1                   -4.6    -43.8    <-100 % -39.2  -2.7    -6.4 
Corporate/Consolidation1         -29.4   -33.5    -14.2 % -4.2   -10.9   -12.9 
Financial result                 10.7    1.4      -86.5 % -9.3   -2.9    -2.5 
Profit before tax                211.3   162.1    -23.3 % -49.3  67.7    76.8 
Income tax                       -66.8   -46.8    30.0 %  20.1   -23.3   -25.9 
Profit for the period            144.5   115.3    -20.2 % -29.2  44.4    50.8 
Earnings per share (EUR)2        2.17    1.75     -19.2 % -0.42  0.69    0.72 
 
Gross cash flow                  333.7   327.1    -2.0 %  -6.6   118.4   135.3 
Cash flow from operating         327.4   732.6    >100 %  405.2  98.7    214.1 
activities 
Investment in property, plant    -153.1  -143.3   6.4 %   9.8    -52.9   -81.6 
and equipment (CAPEX) 
Free cash flow                   36.7    739.6    >100 %  702.9  -13.1   158.7 
Operating free cash flow3        150.5   125.7    -16.5 % -24.8  16.4    31.1 
 
1 Adjusted for the new segment structure since 1 January 2020 
2 Undiluted earnings per share in relation to 67,552,638 shares 
3 Free cash flow before acquisitions/securities/money market investments, Growth 
CAPEX and core banking assets; 2019: excluding cash inflow from the real estate 
development projekt Neutrogasse EUR 32.8m and credited repayment claims related 
to non-wage labour costs paid in previous periods EUR 65.7m 
 
 
 
Excerpts from the management report 
 
REVENUE DEVELOPMENT IN DETAIL 
 
In 2020, the Austrian Post Group's revenue increased by 8.3 % to EUR 2,189.2m. 
On a comparable basis, i.e. excluding Aras Kargo, revenue growth came to 3.3 %. 
Growth in the parcel business generated revenue growth of 44.4 % (+28.4 % 
excluding Aras Kargo), which more than compensated for the revenue decrease 
reported by the Mail and Retail & Bank Divisions. 
 
The Mail Division accounted for 55.6 % of the total revenue of Austrian Post. 
Revenue in the Mail Division declined as expected, down by 7.4 %. On the one 
hand, this is due to a more pronounced downward trend in addressed letter mail 
as a result of electronic substitution and the lockdowns imposed at many public 
offices and companies. On the other hand, this was also caused by the loss of 
direct mail items as a direct effect of the business closures imposed by the 
authorities as a result of COVID-19 in 2020. On 1 April 2020, letter mail 
products and prices were adjusted, with a positive impact on revenues. The 
Parcel & Logistics Division generated 41.5 % of the total revenue in the 
reporting period. The revenue growth of 44.4 % in 2020 was driven by positive 
organic growth from online orders, as well as by additional volumes due to 
cooperation with Deutsche Post DHL Group from August 2019 onwards. The full 
consolidation of the Turkish company Aras Kargo on 25 August 2020 brought 
further revenue growth with a contribution of EUR 101.5m. The Retail & Bank 
Division achieved a share of total revenue of 2.9 % in the 2020 reporting 
period. The 19.7 % decline in revenue in the newly reported Retail & Bank 
Division is due to the fact that bank99 was launched in the market on 1 April 
2020, whereas the previous year's figure included service fees of EUR 29.3m from 
the former banking partner. 
 
Revenue in the Mail Division amounted to EUR 1,222.7m, 63.9 % of which can be

(MORE TO FOLLOW) Dow Jones Newswires

March 12, 2021 01:30 ET (06:30 GMT)