Company release
This release is a summary of
APRIL-JUNE 2022 IN BRIEF - Net sales totaled
EUR 58.6 million (April - June 2021 : 52.2), +12.2% change -
EBITDA was
EUR 4.2 (5.4) million, 7.2% (10.3%) of net sales, -21.3% change -
EBITA was
EUR 3.7 (4.8) million, 6.4% (9.2%) of net sales, -22.6% change -
EBIT was
EUR -0.0 (1,5) million, -0.1% (2.9%) of net sales, -102.4% change -
Comparable earnings per share excluding amortization of goodwill (undiluted) was
EUR 0.07
(0.21) *) -
Net sales growth was driven by acquisitions
-
The increased proportion of repair shop sales contributed to an improved gross margin, while simultaneously increasing expenses below gross margin
-
The decrease in EBITA was due to the slow development of sales combined with increased expenses, which also reflect the changing business mix
-
The strong rise in fuel and energy prices has caused general caution in the customer base and to some extent delayed the demand for services and products in the industry
-
For the reasons mentioned above, the market situation as a whole was weaker than the previous year, but it improved especially in May-June
-
The poor availability of mechanics comprised a growth challenge for the repair shop business
-
The change in the salary system of the mechanics at Raskone had a temporary negative EBITA impact of
EUR 0.2 million - The supply chain was still somewhat affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, which is estimated to continue due to
China 's extensive lockdown measures -
Inventory was maintained at a level higher than normal to ensure delivery capacity
-
Measures to reduce working capital level going forward were accelerated
(0.21) *)
*) The average undiluted number of shares Apr-
JANUARY-JUNE 2022 IN BRIEF - Net sales totaled
EUR 120.6 million (January - June 2021 : 105.8), +14.0% change -
EBITDA was
EUR 10.8 (13.0) million, 9.0% (12.3%) of net sales, -16.8% change -
EBITA was
EUR 9.8 (12.2) million, 8.2% (11.5%) of net sales, -19.4% change -
EBIT was
EUR 2.5 (6.1) million, 2.1% (5.8%) of net sales, -58.8% change -
Comparable earnings per share excluding amortization of goodwill (undiluted) was
EUR 0.30
(0.48) *) -
The development of the EUR/SEK exchange rate during the review period had a negative effect on the Group's EBITA. At comparable exchange rates, EBITA during the review period would have been approximately
EUR 0.5 million higher than reported -
Net sales growth was driven by acquisitions
-
The winter conditions did not generate the same positive effect on net sales as during the exceptionally strong comparison period of H1/2021
-
The profitability of commercial vehicle repair and maintenance business suffered from effects of the pandemic in Q1/2022
-
The market situation was weak until the end of April, but has improved since then, especially in
Sweden , approaching the situation at the end of H1 of the previous year -
Organic growth of the repair shop business was negatively affected by the closing of two of Raskone's repair shops in 2021 as part of continuing development of the business. Like-for-like repair shop development as compared to last year was slightly negative, due to capacity constraints caused by sick leaves and availability of mechanics
-
The Company continued the implementation of its growth strategy by acquiring the shares of the Swedish Skeppsbrons Jönköping AB in May
-
The company acquired the remaining shares of
TD Tunga Delar Sverige AB and SEC Scandinavia A/S from the minority shareholders in May -
The direct impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the business was smaller in the second quarter as compared to the first quarter, with the exception of the working capital situation. Sick leave situation has normalized
-
Due to the exceptionally long delivery times in the Far East purchases, the working capital tied up in inventories was at a higher level than the previous year
-
The AGM of
13 April 2022 decided on a dividend of 0.36 (0.30) EUR per share be paid for FY2021
(0.48) *)
*) The average undiluted number of shares Jan-
2022 OUTLOOK AND LONG-TERM FINANCIAL TARGETS
Relais aims to grow at a faster pace than the market average. Despite the exceptionally poor market development in the beginning of this year, Relais feels well prepared to develop its business during the remainder of financial period of 2022. The overall market growth in the Nordic Countries is expected to be low this year and probably continue to be below last year's development.
In order to ensure the needed product supplies during 2022 some purchases by
The Company does not provide a numeric guidance for financial year 2022.
According to the long-term target published on
KEY FIGURES
EUR thousand unless stated otherwise | Apr- | Apr- | Jan- | Jan- | Jan-Dec 2021 |
Net sales | 58,631 | 52,237 | 120,550 | 105,759 | 237,927 |
Gross profit | 26,680 | 21,792 | 54,703 | 43,125 | 100,822 |
EBITDA | 4,225 | 5,371 | 10,830 | 13,019 | 30,981 |
EBITDA margin, % | 7.2% | 10.3% | 9.0% | 12.3% | 13.0% |
EBITA | 3,729 | 4,817 | 9,833 | 12,206 | 29,271 |
EBITA margin, % | 6.4% | 9.2% | 8.2% | 11.5% | 12.3% |
Operating profit | -37 | 1,492 | 2,506 | 6,084 | 16,413 |
Operating profit margin, % | -0.1% | 2.9% | 2.1% | 5.8% | 6.9% |
Profit (loss) for the period | -2,602 | 354 | -2,226 | 2,265 | 7,708 |
Profit (loss) for the period margin, % | -4.4% | 0.7% | -1.8% | 2.1% | 3.2% |
Comparable profit (loss) excluding amortisation of goodwill | 1,330 | 3,678 | 5,340 | 8,387 | 20,685 |
Comparable profit (loss) excluding amortisation of goodwill margin, % | 2.3% | 7.0% | 4.4% | 7.9% | 8.7% |
Return on equity (ROE) *) | - | - | -5.1% | 5.9% | 9.7% |
Equity ratio | 36.1% | 37.8% | 36.1% | 37.8% | 37.9% |
Net gearing | 119.1% | 90.7% | 119.1% | 90.7% | 95.3% |
Earnings per share, basic (EUR) **) | -0.14 | 0.02 | -0.12 | 0.13 | 0.44 |
Earnings per share, diluted (EUR) **) | -0.14 | 0.02 | -0.12 | 0.12 | 0.42 |
Comparable earnings per share, basic (EUR) **) | -0.14 | 0.02 | -0.12 | 0.13 | 0.44 |
Comparable earnings per share, diluted (EUR) **) | -0.14 | 0.02 | -0.12 | 0.12 | 0.42 |
Comparable earnings per share excluding **) amortisation of goodwill, basic (EUR) | 0.07 | 0.21 | 0.30 | 0.48 | 1.17 |
Comparable earnings per share excluding **) amortisation of goodwill, diluted (EUR) | 0.07 | 0.20 | 0.29 | 0.46 | 1.12 |
Personnel at the end of the period, FTE | 1,023 | 854 | 1,023 | 854 | 950 |
*) Items affecting the comparability and amortization of goodwill are not eliminated
**) The average undiluted number of shares Jan-
CEO ARNI EKHOLM COMMENTS:
"As we communicated in connection with the Q1 interim management statement in
Looking at H1 as a whole from a business mix perspective, there were several different coinciding factors affecting the Group's total result. Firstly, in the commercial vehicle maintenance and repair business there were considerable capacity and demand constraints in Q1 due to Covid-19. In Q2 the customer demand recovered, but the lack of additional mechanics constrained our organic growth in that business. In addition, as part of the optimization of the Raskone workshop network two locations were discontinued late 2021. The negative net sales and EBITDA effect of the closed workshops during H1/2022 were 2.8 MEUR and 0.2 MEUR respectively. The related overhead cost optimization measures done at Raskone during H1 will only start to kick in during the latter part of H2.
Secondly, looking at the Group's wholesale business, the soft Q1 customer and consumer demand as described earlier, resulted in a negative organic growth of that business during the quarter and we believe, for the entire market. The partial recovery of the demand during Q2 was not enough to lift the total organic growth of the wholesale business to positive level for the entire H1, thus being unable to cover for the shortfall in the commercial vehicle repair and maintenance business.
In the commercial vehicle repair and maintenance business area both Raskone and STS have seen good underlying demand for repair jobs during Q2. The biggest bottleneck for both companies has been the shortage of skilled labor. The Covid-19 related sick leaves affected the capacity utilization still during April, but in May-June the lack of mechanics was the biggest single contributor slowing down the growth. Several actions to remediate the situation have already been accelerated, e.g. cooperation with recruitment platforms and direct search agencies, expanding the recruitment base to the Baltic states, increased cooperation with local technical schools and investing in the HR organization but we expect this to take time to address. In addition, Raskone has implemented some changes in the salary system for the mechanics during Q2, moving some parts of the variable salary into the fixed salary of the mechanics. These changes had a temporary negative impact on EBITA of
In the lighting and equipment business, the export driven success of Strands continued. By use of innovative social media marketing, active cooperation with the customers and launch of several interesting new product launches Strands has been able to expand its business especially in
During Q2 we continued our corporate acquisition activities in line with our strategy. Our latest acquisition is the Swedish company Skeppsbrons Jönköping AB, carried out in May. This acquisition will further strengthen our position as the biggest player within the independent commercial vehicle repair and maintenance sector in the Nordic countries. We are continuously doing research on various acquisition targets, and we are at any given time talking with several different parties about possible acquisitions. We act in a disciplined manner and strive to find targets having a combination of good strategic fit, competent and committed management, good and sustainable profitability level, a realistic valuation, and a strong future growth potential as a part of
In the field of operational efficiency, we have initiated a pilot project in June at one of our biggest group companies, Startax Finland. The aim of the project is to improve the net working capital efficiency and define Group-wide best practices for further roll out in other group companies. Also, through the new group management team structure I have presented, there will be additional focus throughout the group on accelerating synergy benefits between the group-companies, especially in the areas of procurement, supplier management, cross sales and product range harmonization.
As a reaction to the recent profitability development the company is developing an action plan. In the development of the plan the company is looking into several profitability improvement measures, including but not limited to, e.g. sourcing, pricing and capacity utilization.
Summarizing H1, there were a range of variables that coincided and impacted our profit margins and the dynamics of the business mix. Some of these factors are outside of our control and contribute to the considerable uncertainties affecting the market demand during H2. The surging inflation caused mainly by the strong increase in energy and fuel prices, the ongoing war in
INVITATION TO THE WEBCAST
Presentation material and video will be available on the company's website at https://relais.fi/en/investors/ after the event.
Board of Directors
Further information:
tel. +358 40 760 3323
Email: arni.ekholm@relais.fi
Certified advisor:
Distribution:
Nasdaq
Key media
www.relais.fi
We are a profitable company seeking strong growth. We carry out targeted acquisitions in line with our growth strategy and want to be an active player in the consolidation of the aftermarket in our area of operation. Our acquisitions are targeted at companies having a good strategic fit with our group companies.
Our net sales in 2021 was
www.relais.fi
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