2010 financial results
Revenue: up 11.8% to € 164.6 million
Current operating income: up 44.6% to € 12.7 million
Net income: up 61.6% to € 6.3 million
Aubay's Board of Directors which met on March 23, 2011 under Chairman Christian Aubert has approved the group's consolidated financial statements for 2010.
Aubay posted revenues of € 164.6 million in 2010, up 5.6% like-for-like on 2009. The group generated a current operating margin of 7.7%, which is higher than the previously announced 7.4% and a marked improvement on the 6.0% realized in 2009. Net income came in at 3.8% of revenue (€ 6.3 million) which is an increase of 61.6%.
These strong results enabled the group to clear its debt faster than anticipated and to finish the financial year with a positive net cash position.
(in € thousands) | 2010 | 2009 | Change |
Revenue | 164,605 | 147,245 | +11.8% |
Current operating income | 12,689 | 8,776 | +44.6% |
as a % of revenue | 7.7% | 6.0% | |
Other operating income and expenses | (1,242) | (793) | |
Operating income | 11,447 | 7,983 | +43.4% |
Financial income | (260) | (1,293) | |
Tax | (5,257)* | 3,121 | |
Income of companies accounted for by the equity method | 392 | 343 | |
Net income from consolidated companies | 6,322 | 3,912 | +61.6% |
as a % of revenue | 3.8% | 2.7% | |
Group net income | 6,275 | 3,984 | |
Minority interests | 47 | (72) |
The consolidated financial statements have been audited in full. The Auditors' Report will be published once the due diligence procedures required for the publication of the registration document are complete.
* restated for France's corporate value-added tax contribution or CVAE (€ 1.3 million).
France: driving performance
With revenues of € 102.5 million and an organic growth rate of 8.0%, Aubay's operations in France now account for over 60% of the group's total activities. France's current operating margin increased to 8.9% from 7.4% in 2009, an excellent performance underpinned by a new investment cycle amongst Aubay's major clients, the group's key positioning within the Banking, Finance and Insurance sectors and the high success rate of its sales strategy and teams.
The smooth integration of Adex which was acquired in July 2010 will be complete in May with the regrouping of all teams at the premises in Boulogne-Billancourt. The new, centralized organizational structure set in place a few months ago is already proving to be extremely effective.
Italy: best overseas entity
Aubay group's overseas activities grew 2.1% to generate revenues of € 62.1 million in 2010 compared with € 60.8 million one year earlier.
The breakdown in group activity by country shows a more marked degree of discrepancy.
Having signed several new contracts, Italy's revenues of € 23.4 million set it firmly back on the road to strong growth (+7.6%). The country's current operating margin has more than doubled to 6.6%, and these indicators are expected to improve sharply again in 2011.
While the € 30.9 million in revenues generated by Aubay in Belgium and Luxembourg in 2010 reflect a moderate growth in activity (+1.8%), the countries' current operating margin improved significantly, coming in at 12.6% after 9.7% in 2009.
Hampered by a morose economic backdrop, revenues for the Spain/Portugal area dropped by more than 10% to € 7.8 million. Various restructuring measures were introduced in July, and the current operating loss of € 800,000 for the year was divided by five in the second half of 2010 to reduce it to € 100,000. The situation now appears to be stabilizing, and with activity in Portugal continuing to grow, the group's operations in the region are expected to be positive again as of the start of 2011.
Positive net cash position on December 31, 2010
Aubay's net cash position for 2010 exceeded group forecasts to stand at € 1.3 million at the end of the financial year. In fact, the group was able to finance the acquisition of Adex over six months thanks to its excellent results and careful management. As a result, Aubay has begun 2011 with an enviable balance sheet which should enable it to comfortably envisage further acquisitions.
Proposed dividend of € 0.14
Aubay's Board of Directors is to propose the payment of a dividend of € 0.14 for financial year 2010 at the General Meeting of Shareholders (vs. € 0.13 for 2009).
Outlook for 2011
The strong start to the year announced when Aubay published its yearly revenues has continued in the first three months of 2011 and the group's visibility continues to improve. Visits to most major clients confirm that budgets are up, triggering increasingly strong demand and shorter decision-making processes. Sales conditions are more favorable on all new business.
Recruitment, however, continues to be an issue for Aubay, even if the group anticipates that higher sales prices should be sufficient to offset higher payroll costs.
Aubay has confirmed its targets of € 185 million in revenues and organic growth of 8% in 2011 as well as its intention to further improve its operating margin.
The group will publish its revenues for the first quarter of 2011 on April 26 at the end of the trading day.
For further information, visit the Finance section on the group website at www.aubay.com.
About AUBAY
AUBAY is an integration and technology consultancy company which specializes in information and industrial systems, networks and telecommunications. With 2,350 employees across 6 countries (France, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Luxembourg), Aubay generated revenues of € 164.6 million in 2010 for a current operating margin of 7.7%.
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Contacts
Chloé Van Den Bussche – Actus Finance – Tel. +33 (0)1 53 67 35 95 - Email: cvandenbussche@actus.fr
Paula Esteves – Aubay Communications - Tel. +33 (0)1 46 10 68 60 - Email: pesteves@aubay.com