2021 annual results: Strong growth, profitability and cash generation - Operating margin from ordinary activities: 10.6 % - Net income attributable to owners of the parent: EUR 34.4 million - Net cash: EUR 74.8 million

23 Mar 2022 17:55 CET

Aubay's Board of Directors, which met on March 23, 2022 under Chairman Christian Aubert, approved the statutory and consolidated financial statements for 2021. The financial statements have been audited by the Statutory Auditors and the auditors' report will be issued once the procedures required to publish the company's Universal Registration Document have been completed.

After demonstrating remarkable resilience in 2020, the Group posted exceptional results in 2021 despite the uncertain health environment. It met or exceeded all its targets for growth, profitability, recruitment and cash generation.

Operating margin from ordinary activities above normative margin

Operating margin from ordinary activities was higher than estimated when the annual results were published in January, at 10.6 %, exceeding the Group's normative profitability target of between 9.5 % and 10.5 %.

The Group's operating margin from ordinary activities for the period came in at 9.6 % for activities in France and 11. 6% for activities overseas, compared with 9.3 % and 10.0 %, respectively, in 2020.

Operating profit: €47.3 million

Operating profit came to €47.3 million, a substantial increase of 22.5 %, after taking into account the cost of performance shares for €1.5 million and “Other operating income and expenses” representing a net expense of €1.1 million, primarily comprising restructuring expenses. The operating margin was 10.1 %, among the best in the sector.

Sharp increase in net income attributable to owners of the parent (7.3 % of net margin)

Net income attributable to owners of the parent soared to €34.4 million, up 31.7 %, setting a new record after taking into account a tax expense of €12.9 million representing an effective tax rate of 27 %, versus 31 % in 2020.

Net cash (excluding rental liabilities) up significantly at €74.8 million

The Group's financial position was considerably strengthened in 2021 thanks to excellent generation of cash from operating activities of €45.8 million, versus €47.2 million in 2020, a superb performance given the strong increase in revenue. As a result, net cash increased from €44.7 million at December 31, 2020 to €74.8 million at December 31, 2021.

Proposed dividend of €1.10 per share

In light of this remarkable performance and the Group's excellent financial position, the Board of Directors has decided to propose a final dividend of €1.10 per share in respect of 2021 to the Annual General Meeting to be held on May 10, 2022, representing a payout ratio of 42 % of net income. Taking into account the interim dividend of €0.34 per share paid on November 10, 2021, the balance to be paid will amount to €0.76 per share.

Outlook for 2022

As of early 2022, the market in which Aubay operates is still very buoyant. Customers are continuing to ramp up their investments in digital transformation, with demand from key accounts even higher than the same time last year. The Group's key challenge will be to generate profitable and sustainable growth that outperforms its benchmark market, with Numeum forecasting growth of 4.7 % for the IT services industry in 2022.

All the Group's operating indicators are sound, building on the strong dynamic seen in 2021, and management is confident that the Group will achieve the following targets:

• Organic growth of between 7 % to 9 %, i.e., revenue of between €504 million and €513 million,
• Operating margin from ordinary activities of between 9.5 % and 10.5 %.

Aubay will publish its 2022 first-quarter revenue on April 21, 2022 after the close of trading.

Glossary

Organic revenue growth: This refers to growth calculated for a constant scope of activity for a given period, excluding revenues from companies that were acquired or sold during the period. As Aubay conducts most of its business in the euro zone, any impact from changes in exchange rates is minimal.

Operating profit from ordinary activities: this indicator corresponds to operating profit before the cost of free shares and other income and expenses that are unusual, abnormal or infrequent and that are booked separately in order to facilitate understanding of an entity's recurring operating performance.

Operating margin from ordinary activities: this indicator, which is expressed as a percentage, is the ratio of operating profit from ordinary activities to revenue.

Net debt or net cash (excluding rental liabilities): this indicator represents the difference between an entity's cash and debt. If the result is negative, it is referred to as net debt. If it is positive, it is referred to as net cash.

About Aubay

Aubay is a digital services company working alongside some of the biggest names in the Banking, Finance, Insurance, Manufacturing, Energy, Transport and Telecoms sectors. With 7,306 employees in seven countries (France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Italy, Spain, Portugal and the United Kingdom), Aubay generated revenue of €470.6 million in 2021.

Euronext, Compartment: B - ISIN FR0000063737-AUB - Reuters : AUBT.PA - Bloomberg AUB:FP

Contacts

Amaury Dugast – Actus Finance – Tel.: +33 (0)1 53 67 36 74 - adugast@actus.fr

David Fuks – Co-Chief Operating Officer – Finance Department – Tel.: +33 (0)1 46 10 67 67 – E-mail: dfuks@aubay.com

APPENDICES

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