COMPAGNIE DES ALPES (EPA:CDA) - CDA - Full Year results 2017/2018
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10/12/2018 19:02
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Press Release
2017/2018 ANNUAL RESULTS:
VERY GOOD OPERATING AND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCES
* Sales up by 3.1% on a comparable basis
* Operating margin targets reached
o EBITDA margin for Ski Areas: 37.1% of sales
o EBITDA margin for Leisure Destinations ( excluding Futuroscope): 27.0% of
sales
* Strong growth in net attributable income, Group share: +82.6% to EUR57.2M
* Recommended dividend of 0.65 EUR per share, an increase of 30%
Paris, December 10, 2018 - The Board of Directors of Compagnie des Alpes, in a
meeting chaired by Dominique Marcel, approved the Group's consolidated
financial statements for the financial year ended 09/30/2018 ( audited
financial statements).
(in EURM) Actual data restated * Comparable scope **
2017/18 2016/17 Change 2017/18 2016/17 Change
Sales 801.2 755.9 +6.0% 778.5 755.2 +3.1%
EBITDA 218.3 207.2 +5.4% 217.4 208.2 +4.4%
EBITDA/Sales 27.2% 27.4% -20 bps 27.9% 27.6% +30
bps
Operating income 97.0 98.9 -1.9% - - -
Net attributable
income, Group share 57.2 31.3 +82.6% - - -
Net investments 186.2 159.6 +26.6 M - - -
Free cash flow from
operations (1) 31.8 50.1 -18.3 M - - -
* Results for the 2017/2018 financial year factor in the acquisition of
Travelfactory, changes in scope, certain reclassifications between divisions,
and a change in accounting method, all detailed at the end of this press
release.
** Sales for 2017/2018 and 2016/2017 are restated actual data and excluding
Travelfactory.
******
Commenting on the results for the period ended, Dominique Marcel, Chairman and
CEO of Compagnie des Alpes, stated: "This was an excellent year, with historic
operational and financial performances. Once again, we achieved our margin
targets for our traditional businesses and maintained our return on capital
employed above 8% despite an unprecedented investment effort. This upward
investment trend will continue into 2018/2019 because it allows us to improve
our profitability over time but also because it is the foundation of our future
growth. Its positive effects can also be seen in further improvements in
customer satisfaction ratings at the vast majority of our sites.
During the year, the Group showed its agility, particularly through the
acquisition of Travelfactory, which makes us the leading online distributor of
ski holidays in France, but also thanks to the successful sale of our Seoul and
Prague operations. Combined with the effects of refinancing our debt in 2017,
this has led to a significant improvement in our financial results.
(1) See glossary
The Group's skill, expertise, and operational excellence were once again
demonstrated, notably during the renovation of the Jardin d'Acclimatation as
well as more recently with the signing of several contracts in China in the run
up to the next Olympic Games. In addition, an industrial partnership was
concluded with the Fosun group for the construction of a new generation snow
dome in the Shanghai area".
HEALTHY BUSINESS ACROSS THE BOARD AND TRAVELFACTORY INTEGRATION
Consolidated sales for the Group reached EUR801.2M, an increase of 6.0% on a
restated basis and of 3.1% on a comparable scope basis. This performance
reflects growth in the Group's two core businesses.
For the Ski Areas division, growth was +3.0% against a backdrop of heavy
snowfall across mountainous regions in France and sometimes extreme weather
conditions, which limited hours of operation, particularly in January. Sales
for the year came to EUR429.3M. For lift ticket sales, which account for the
bulk of sales, growth was 2.1%, an increase that is attributable to a further
increase in the number of skier days (+0.8%), for the third year in a row, as
well as a rise in sales per skier day (+1.3%).
For the Leisure Destinations division, sales rose by 4.3% on a comparable scope
basis, reaching EUR339.9M. Sales were driven by good momentum in spend per
visitor, which continues to grow (+ 3.0%), thanks in particular to higher
in-park spend and higher attendance (+1.3%). The latter hit a new record of 8.8
million visits without negatively impacting customer satisfaction, which is
once again on the rise for most sites.
Holdings and Supports reported sales of EUR32.0M, versus EUR12.4M on a restated
basis the previous financial year, which did not include Travelfactory,
consolidated as of January 1, 2018, and whose integration within the Group is
progressing in a wholly satisfactory manner. The year was also marked by new
consulting assignments, a business that increased by more than 25% compared to
last year. On a like-for-like basis (excluding Travelfactory), the decrease in
sales is due to a difference in revenue recognition method for historical
online distribution activities and real estate agencies.
GROUP PROFITABILITY IMPROVES AGAIN
EBITDA progressed by 5.4% on a restated basis, reaching EUR218.3M. The
EBITDA/Sales ratio is virtually unchanged at 27.3% despite the dilutive impact
of the Travelfactory. On a like-for-like basis, the Group's EBO margin rate
increased by 30 basis points to 27.9%, the result of both the resilience of the
ski area division's profitability and further growth in leisure destinations.
Ski Area EBITDA came to EUR159.3M, an increase of +3.2% compared with the
previous financial year despite very challenging operating conditions this
year. The EBITDA/Sales ratio rose slightly, to 37.1%, in line with the Group's
stated target.
EBITDA for Leisure Destinations posted a solid rise of +7.4% on a comparable
scope basis, reaching EUR82M. Since the strategic shift was announced in
December 2013, EBITDA for this division has thus been multiplied by 2.7 in 6
years on a comparable basis. Compared with the previous year, the EBITDA/Sales
ratio improved by 70 basis points, to 24.1%. Excluding Futuroscope, it amounts
to 27.0%, which means that it reached the goal that the Group had set for
2019.
EBITDA for Holdings and Supports (including Travelfactory for 9 months and
Alpes Ski Résa for 12 months) came to a loss of EUR22.9M, a 2.2% improvement
on a reported basis. The centralization of a number of cross-business functions
(Communications, HR management, IT, Ticketing, Unified management software,
Marketing) represents most of the costs of this segment.
Operating Income (OI) fell slightly, to EUR97.0M versus EUR98.9M the previous
year, which got a boost from non- recurring items amounting to EUR3.3M.
Excluding these non-recurring items from last year, operating income would have
increased even though depreciation and amortization increased by 7.2%,
reflecting the Group's proactive strategy in terms of investments over the last
years.
SHARP RISE IN NET INCOME
The net cost of debt was nearly cut in half after the Group refinancing that
was rolled out at the start of the year. The average interest rate went from
4.03% in 2016/2017 to 2.17% in 2017/2018.
The income from discontinued businesses was a net positive of EUR3.7M. Thanks
to the rapid disposals of the Prague and Seoul sites, it was possible to limit
operating losses during the year, which were more than offset by the proceeds
from these disposals. For the previous financial year, the net contribution
from discontinued operations represented a loss of EUR 24.7 million, including
an impairment charge of EUR 18.8 million.
Consolidated net income thus rose by more than 58%, to EUR63.2M, compared with
EUR39.9M for the previous year.
In light of a decrease in minority interests, net attributable income, Group
share, for the 2017/2018 financial year increased by more than 82%, reaching
EUR57.2M, versus EUR31.3M for the previous year.
CONTROLLED RISE IN INVESTMENTS
As expected, industrial investments net of disposals increased by almost EUR27M
on a restated basis compared with the prior year and amounted to EUR186.2M. For
ski areas, they increased by EUR 6.6 million and represent 21.2% of sales for
this division. For leisure destinations, they rose by EUR 21.1 million, mainly
due to the construction of hotels at Parc Astérix and the indoor water park at
Bellewaerde. They represent 26.8% of this division's sales.
Free Cash flow from operations(2) is directly impacted by this increase in
investments. It was EUR31.8M for the year, a decrease of EUR18.3M over last
year.
Net debt rose from EUR380.5M to EUR402.3M. Conversely, the net debt/EBITDA
ratio continues to improve and ended the period at 1.84, versus 1.87 at the end
of last year. The Group thus has a large self-financing capacity and is well
within the limits imposed by its banking covenant (net debt/EBITDA ratio below
3.5).
Operational ROCE,(3) which measures the profitability of capital invested in
Ski Areas and Leisure Destinations, was 8.2%, above the target set by the Group
for 2019 (above 8%). The slight decrease compared with the previous year is due
to the investments made during the financial year - in particular the Parc
Astérix lodging projects and the Bellewaerde indoor water park - which will
begin to generate cash flow only after delivery.
Dividend recommendation: 0.65 EUR / share
In light of the Group's good performance, the Board of Directors will ask that
the shareholders approve the distribution of a dividend of EUR 0.65 per share
when they meet on March 7, 2019, an increase of 30% over the previous financial
year and a payout ratio of 28% of the Group's share of net income. This
dividend amount demonstrates the Group's confidence that its performance will
continue to be good and is consistent with the expected level of investment in
the medium term.
(2) See glossary
(3) See glossary
OUTLOOK & STRATEGY
Ski Areas
The first snowfall, which has occurred in recent weeks, has allowed the
stations to open according to schedule. To date, the dynamics of reservation is
slightly more favorable than last year at the same time. Although this data is
partial, these indicators allow the Group to start the season with
confidence.
As of the 2018/2019 financial year, the Group will apply IFRS 15 on revenue
recognition. The effect will be totally neutral on sales for the full year but
will result in a change in its distribution by quarter.
Leisure Destinations
After five consecutive years of strong growth, sales during the Halloween
period is consolidating in 2018/2019, while pre-sales of Arbres de Noël at
Parc Astérix are slightly higher than those recorded last year, trends that
are in line to our expectations.
Concerning the 2nd quarter, Grévin Paris will be closed from January 7 to
February 7 for enhancement work (scripting of the visit and the customer
experience and optimization of visitor flow management).
Investments, margin and profitability targets
Continuing on after the close of this financial year, investments will continue
to increase in 2018/2019.
For Ski Areas, the annual investment budget will be increased by EUR10 million
given the commitments made in connection with recently renewed or extended DSPs
and the Group's desire to continue to secure snow cover and support the
objective of the great customer satisfaction program with the installation of
new lifts and major structuring projects.
With regard to the Ski Area division, the Group has set an EBITDA margin target
of 36 to 37% for the 2018/2019 financial year. This slight decrease compared to
the 2017/2018 financial year is due to the anticipated increase in a number of
operating expenses, such as energy expenditure and insurance costs.
For Leisure Destinations, the investment effort will be increased by EUR8M. The
investments will focus on the final phase of the hotel project at Parc Astérix
and the construction of a third hotel, Les Quais de Lutèce, which will also
have a capacity of 150 rooms and which is expected to open in 2020.
Consequently, the hotel capacity for this site will have increased from 100
rooms in 2017 to 450 rooms in 2020, thanks to the renovation and expansion of
the original hotel and the construction of two new themed hotels, the Cité
Suspendue and the Quays de Lutèce. The investment effort also concerns the
ongoing construction of a 3,000-square-meter indoor water park that will be
adjacent to the Bellewaerde facility and thus enable a number of synergies,
particularly in operations and marketing. This water park is scheduled to open
in mid- 2019.
The Group's objective for its Leisure Destinations division is to deliver an
EBITDA/Sales margin (excluding Futuroscope) of between 27% and 28%, which is
higher than the level reached for financial year 2017/2018.
Lastly, the 2022 target for Operating ROOC in excess of the level it reached
last year is maintained, it being confirmed that this evolution will not be
linear.
Upcoming events:
* 1Q 2018/2019 sales: Thursday, January 17, 2019, after stock
market closes
* Annual Shareholders' Meeting: Thursday, March 7, 2019, afternoon
* 2Q 2018/2019 sales: Thursday, April 18, 2019, after stock market
closes
www.compagniedesalpes.com
Additional information
1 - Consolidated annual results, audited - October 1, 2017 through September
30, 2018
(in EURM)
FY FY Change % FY Change %
2017 / 2018 2016 / 2017 2016 / 2017
Actual scope Comparable Actual scope,
scope, restated restated
(1) (3) (1) - (3) (4) (1) - (4)
/ (3) / (4)
Sales 801,2 755,2 6,1% 755,9 6,0%
EBITDA 218,3 208,2 4,8% 207,2 5,4%
EBITDA/Sales 27,3% 27,6% -1,2% 27,4%
Operating Income 97,0 98,8 -1,8% 98,9 -1,9%
Net cost of debt and
miscellaneous -12,3 -19,0 -35,6%
Tax expense -29,7 -19,9 49,2%
Equity method investees 4,5 4,7 -4,8%
Net income, going
concerns 59,5 64,6 -8,0%
Net income,
discontinued businesses 3,7 -24,7
Net Income 63,2 39,9 58,3%
Minority interests -6,0 -8,6 -30,5%
Net attributable income,
Group share 57,2 31,3 82,6%
2 - Sales by division
(in EURM)
FY FY Change % FY Change
%
2017 / 2018 2016 / 2017 2016 / 2017
Actual scope Comparable Actual scope,
scope, restated restated
(1) (3) (1) - (3) (4) (1) - (4)
/ (3) / (4)
Ski Areas 429,3 416,9 3,0% 416,9 3,0%
Leisure Destinations 339,9 325,9 4,3% 326,6 4,1%
Holdings and supports 32,0 12,4 157,6% 12,4 157,6%
Sales 801,2 755,2 6,1% 755,9 6,0%
3 - EBITDA by division
(in EURM)
FY % Sales FY % du CA
2017 / 2018 2017 / 2018 2017 / 2018 2016 / 2017
Actual scope Actual scope Comparable Comparable
scope, restated scope, restated
(1) (3)
Ski Areas 159,3 37,1% 154,3 37,0%
Leisure Destinations 82,0 24,1% 77,4 23,7%
Holdings and supports -22,9 -71,6% -23,4 -188,6%
EBITDA 218,3 27,3% 208,2 27,6%
Change % FY Change %
2016 / 2017
Actual scope,
restated
1) - (3) (4) (1) - (4)
/ (3) / (4)
3,2% 154,3 3,2%
-5,9% 76,3 -7,4%
2,2% -23,4 2,2%
4,8% 207,2 5,4%
(*) Reported data for financial year 2017/2018 have been restated in
application of IFRS 5 relative to discontinued businesses and take into account
the reclassification of some businesses (see note 5.1). Data for 2016/2017 on a
comparable scope basis totally exclude sales for Fort Fun (Grévin
Deutschland), a park that was sold in April of 2017. Elles sont fournies
jusqu'au résultat opérationnel
Glossary
Divisional EBITDA: Combined EBITDA for Ski Areas, Leisure Destinations, and
Group Development
Free Cash Flow: Difference between self-financing capacity and net industrial
investments (changes in working capital requirements are not taken into
account).
Self-financing Capacity: Net income
* Plus depreciation, amortization and provisions, capital losses on disposals,
dividends paid by companies accounted for under the equity method, and any
other charges without cash impact
* Less reversals of provisions, capital gains on disposals, the share of income
in companies accounted for by the equity method, and any other non-cash
income.
Net industrial investments: Acquisitions of tangible and intangible assets net
of changes in accounts payable for fixed assets and proceeds from the sale of
fixed assets.
Free Cash Flow from Operations: Free cash flow before interest expense and
taxes.
ROOC: used to measure the profitability of capital invested in the Group's core
businesses (Ski Areas and Leisure Destinations). It corresponds to the ratio,
for each division and aggregated for both divisions, of after tax operating
income to consolidated net assets excluding goodwill.
* After tax operating income is calculated after the deduction of a
theoretical tax expense based on the normative tax rate of 33.33%
* Net assets used excluding goodwill include:
o The net values of long-term fixed assets after the exclusion of
goodwill
o Working capital requirement
o Deferred tax assets net of deferred tax liabilities
o Current provisions
For financial year 2017/2018, the reconciliation of ROOC is as follows:
Ski Areas Rest of the Total Group
and Leisure Group
Destinations
Operating Income 108 880 - 11 881 97 000
Theoretical taxation (33.33%) - 36 290 3 960 - 32 330
After-tax operating income 72 590 - 7 921 64 670
Assets used ex-goodwill 888 228 - 17 802 870 426
Divisional operating ROCE 8,2% 7,4%
Restatements and comparable scope
Results for the 2017/2018 financial year factor in the acquisition of
Travelfactory, changes in scope, certain reclassifications between divisions,
and a change in accounting method:
* I - Restated data correspond to 2016/2017 sales as reported, from which the
Prague and Seoul facilities have been removed (and reclassified under
discontinued businesses) and within which the following divisional
reclassifications were made:
o Sales for Grévin Montréal and Chaplin's World by Grévin, as well as those
from CDA Production previously accounted for under the former BU Group
Development (now included under the BU Holdings and Supports) are now
included under the BU Leisure Destinations.
o Real estate agencies and online distribution (including Alpes Ski Résa),
previously accounted for under the BU Ski Areas, have been reclassified and
are now included under the BU Holdings and Supports, as are the consulting
activities carried out by CDA Management and CDA Beijing, which were
previously classified under the BU Group Development.
o Futuroscope sales for financial year 2016/2017 were adjusted to align its
accounting method with that used in 2017/2018. As a result of this
restatement, sales related to the transfer of certain costs (energy, sales
commissions, back margin) were neutralized, as were the corresponding
expenditures. Consequently, this restatement had no effect on EBITDA while
improving the comparability of margins.
* II - Accounting scope: Comparable scope results for 2016/2017 correspond to
reported sales as restated (see point I above), from which Fort Fun (sold in
April 2017) results have been eliminated.
* III - Comparable scope change: The difference is calculated by comparing
2017/2018 sales as reported, from which Travelfactory has been eliminated
(consolidated as of 01/01/18) from comparable scope 16/17 results (see point
II.)
* * *
Since it was founded in 1989, Compagnie des Alpes has established itself as an
uncontested leader in the leisure industry. At the helm of 11 of the world's
most prestigious ski resorts (Tignes, Val d'Isère, Les Arcs, La Plagne, Les
Menuires, Les 2Alpes, Méribel, Serre-Chevalier, etc.) and11 renowned leisure
destinations (Parc Astérix, Grévin, Walibi, Futuroscope, etc.), the company
is steadily expanding in Europe (France, the Netherlands, Belgium, etc.) and,
more recently, at the international level (Grévin Montréal in 2013,
Chaplin's World by Grévin Prague in April 2016, and engineering and
management assistance contracts (China, Russia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Turkey,
Morocco, Japan)). CDA also owns stakes in 4 ski areas, including Chamonix.
During the financial year ended September 30, 2018, CDA facilities welcomed
nearly 23 million visitors and generated consolidated sales of 801.2 MEUR.
With nearly 5,000 employees, Compagnie des Alpes works with its partners to
build projects that generate unique experiences, the opposite of a standardized
concept. Exceptional leisure activities for everyone.
CDA is included in the following indices: CAC All-Shares, CAC All-Tradable, CAC
Mid & Small and CAC Small.
ISIN: FR0000053324; Reuters: CDAF.PA; FTSE: 5755 Recreational services
Contacts:
Compagnie des Alpes : Denis HERMESSE +33 1 46 84 88 97
denis.hermesse@compagniedesalpes.fr
Sandra PICARD +33.1 46 84 88 53
sandra.picard@compagniedesalpes.fr
Alexis d'ARGENT +33 1 46 84 88 79
alexis.dargent@compagniedesalpes.fr
Corpus : Xavier YVON +33.6 88 29 72 37
xavier.yvon@corp-us.fr