EQS Group AG with outstanding first half of the year 2020

EQS Group AG with outstanding first half of the year 2020

• Adjusted* revenue grows by 21%
• High cost discipline during COVID-19 pandemic
• EBITDA jumps to €3 million (previous year €-107,000*)
• Newly acquired recurring business volume (ARR) is €2.94 million
• Around 500 customers with new COCKPIT contract to date

 

Munich – 14 August 2020

EQS Group AG (ISIN: DE0005494165) continues its positive business development for the half year 2020 and records an outstanding result. In the first six months, the company achieved sales revenues of €18.45 million (previous year €18.70 million). Adjusted by the turnover of ARIVA.DE AG, deconsolidated in half year 2019, this corresponds to a growth of 21% compared to the previous year. The EBITDA increased to €3 million considering the accounting guidelines of leasing contracts in accordance with IFRS 16 (adjusted for IFRS 16: €2.02 million). The consolidated net income of the group was €117,000. Accordingly, the earnings per share were €0.09.

For the key figure new ARR, which quantifies the newly acquired recurring business volume, a volume of €2.94 million (€1.30 million) is calculated. Onboarding customers to the new IR COCKPIT took the expected course and increased sharply. Until now, around 500 new contracts have been concluded. The number of new customers (SaaS) is 151.

The following picture arises for the second quarter: the turnover is €10.10 million (€10.17 million), the EBITDA increased to €2.2 million (adjusted for IFRS 16: €1.71 million) considering IFRS 16, the group consolidated net income is €372,000. The profit per share was €0.26 (previous year €-0.39) in the period from April to June. Adjusted by the consolidation effects of ARIVA.DE AG, the turnover increased by 22% in the second quarter.

The main reason for the jump in profit is the high cost discipline as a precautionary measure during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in the areas of staff and marketing. Whilst the growth in the area of COCKPIT applications was as expected, an increased demand for digital solutions and a higher message volume led to a turnover slightly above the planning corridor. In the second half of the year, these effects should no longer be as pronounced as in the second quarter.

Segment development

In the Compliance sector, the adjusted revenue in the first half of 2020 increased by 16% to €9.42 million (€8.16 million*). The number of customers increased by 63 to 1,343 customers in the area of SaaS customers, and by 80 to 4,329 customers in the area of XML-Filings (annual basis). In the Investor Relations sector, the adjusted turnover increased by 28% to €9.03 million (€7.02 million*). The number of customers increased by 20 to 2,192 in total.

Achim Weick, founder and CEO of EQS Group AG: “We have learnt to deal with the corona crisis. Our actions are determined by the health of our employees, and the high service quality for our customers. In addition, we imposed a high cost discipline at the beginning of the pandemic. The profit increase for the half year shows that our business model has high scalability and is also very robust. We are therefore very optimistic about achieving our objectives for the second half of the year.”

The annual recurring revenues indicate a quota of 79% in the second quarter, on a group level. For Germany, the value is 83%. This is based on 1,255 customers.

Adjusted forecast for the financial year 2020

Based on the preliminary half year figures, the management board increased the forecast for the financial year 2020 on August 4, 2020, and, as explained in the Ad-hoc notification, is planning on an adjusted revenue increase of 15-20% of €36.7 million to €38.2 million, and a significantly improved EBITDA compared to the previous year, in the range of €4 million to €5 million. For the key figure new ARR, which quantifies the recurring business volume newly concluded by contract, a volume of €4.5 million to €5.5 million is expected. In addition, 300 to 350 new SaaS-customers should be acquired until year end.

The management board will explain the financial results for the first time in a video webcast starting at 11:00 a.m. (CEST). No conference call dial-in is necessary. This will be broadcast live on the internet at https://webcasts.eqs.com/eqs20200814/en. Attendees can ask their questions live or in advance using the Q&A function (Chat).

Key figures (IFRS; in € mln.)	6M 2020	6M 2019	+/-
Revenues*	18.454	15.206	+21%
Operating Expenses*	16.710	17.134	-2%
EBITDA*	2.996	-.107	> +100%
EBITDA adjusted for IFRS 16	2.018	-.763	> +100%
EBIT*	1.004	-1.712	> +100%
Group Earnings*	.117	-2.131	> +100%
Free Cash Flow	2.980	-1.103	> +100%
Equity-Ratio (%)	52	45	–

 

*Adjusted for the sale of ARIVA.DE AG in 2019

More information:

The figures for 6M 2020 are unaudited.

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EQS Group is a leading international provider of regulatory technology (RegTech) in the fields of corporate compliance and investor relations. In working with EQS Group, thousands of companies worldwide inspire trust by fulfilling complex national and international disclosure obligations, minimizing risks and communicating transparently with stakeholders.

EQS Group’s products are pooled in the cloud-based software EQS COCKPIT. They ensure the professional control of compliance workflows in the fields of whistleblower protection and case management, policy management, insider list management and disclosure obligations. In addition, listed companies benefit from a global newswire, investor targeting and contact management, IR websites, digital reports and webcasts for efficient and secure investor communications.

EQS Group was founded in 2000 in Munich, Germany. Today the group employs over 350 professionals and has offices in the world’s key financial markets.

Contact:

André Marques

CFO

Tel.: +49 89-21029833

Mobile: +49 175-5250009

Email.: andre.marques@eqs.com