DGAP-News: Telefónica Deutschland Holding AG
/ Key word(s): Quarter Results
MUNICH, 29 July 2020 Preliminary results for January to June 2020 Business dynamics intact despite COVID-19 - supported by encouraging signs of recovery - Core business momentum intact in the first full quarter under COVID-19 with encouraging signs of recovery post easing of lockdown restrictions; continued to support employees, customers and the wider society through a variety of COVID-19 initiatives - Revenue +0.3% y-o-y in Q2 20 on sustained handset & fixed revenue growth and with tougher comps for MSR; ~EUR -62m[1] of combined COVID-19 impacts and other non-recurrent special factors - OIBDA[2] -5.1% y-o-y in Q2 20 reflecting revenue flow through incl. higher supply costs from handsets while impacted by ~EUR -43m1 of combined COVID-19 impacts and other non-recurrent special factors - C/S ratio of 13.1% in H1 20; making steady progress with LTE roll-out while facing some temporary COVID-19 related disruptions in the supply chain - on track to achieve FY20 coverage targets - Gradual recovery of trading performance & prepaid dynamics following shop re-openings at end of April, roaming expected to recover with easing travel restrictions - Confirming FY20 revenue and OIBDA guidance while continuously monitoring & analysing COVID-19 impacts Second quarter 2020 operational & financial highlights - In a dynamic yet rational environment, Telefónica Deutschland's core business momentum remained intact with encouraging signs of recovery post easing of lockdown restrictions during the first full quarter under Covid-19. Nevertheless, the Company was not immune to COVID-19 impacts due to the government-imposed restrictions. In particular, the mandatory closure of O2 shops between mid-March and the end of April resulted in weaker trading and the lockdown muted prepaid dynamics. In addition, the worldwide travel restrictions compromised roaming patterns. - In the COVID-19 driven environment, Telefónica Deutschland continued to support employees, customers and the wider society through a variety of initiatives, such as providing mobility analysis to the Robert-Koch-Institute, promoting the Corona-Warn-App (>15m downloads), passing on to customers Germany's 6-month VAT-reduction of 3% and launching time limited complimentary offers (e.g. 3-month O2TV). - The Company's network continued its resilient performance coping well with the COVID-19-driven change in traffic patterns and ensured highly reliable connectivity for customers.
- Mobile postpaid[3] registered +158k net additions (excl. +78k M2M) in Q2 20, mainly driven by the sustained demand for the well performing O2 Free tariff portfolio and solid partner trading. Total postpaid churn remained at low levels of 1.4% in Q2 20 while churn in the O2 brand continued to be at even lower levels of 1.1%, an improvement of 0.1 p.p. y-o-y. These positive churn trends are mainly driven by the Company's retention focus supported by sustained network quality improvements and some tailwinds from COVID-19 related lower churn entries in March/April. - LTE customer base increased +25.6% y-o-y to 25.3[4]m at the end of June 2020 resulting in LTE penetration of 60%, up +12.1p.p. y-o-y. The ongoing adoption of LTE and the O2 Free portfolio supported mobile data usage growth through larger data bundles. The average data usage of O2 Free customers reached >7GB per month. - Revenue totalled EUR 1,790m, up +0.3% y-o-y in Q2 20 on sustained growth of handset & fixed revenues while MSR faced tougher y-o-y comps. Operational revenue trends remained intact posting +3.8% y-o-y growth in the quarter excluding ~EUR -62m[5] of combined COVID-19 impacts and other non-recurrent special factors. - Mobile service revenue[6] (MSR) fell -3.3% y-o-y to EUR 1,275m including the vast majority of the above mentioned combined special factors, mainly due to lockdown-related impacts such as weaker trading momentum, lower demand for prepaid services and a meaningful drop in roaming. A gradual recovery of trading performance and prepaid dynamics started with the phased removal of lockdown measures (i.e. shop re-openings at the end of April) while roaming is expected to recover gradually with easing travel restrictions. Excluding combined special factors, operational MSR trends improved by +1.3% y-o-y in Q2 20 on tougher y-o-y comps (note: MSR turnaround in Q2 19). - Handset revenue growth accelerated to +14.4% y-o-y and totalled EUR 322m on continued strong demand for high value handsets supported by online channels during the lockdown. - Fixed-line revenue continued its growth path, posting +4.3% y-o-y growth to EUR 193m supported by retail customer base growth on the back of strong VDSL demand. Fixed retail revenue maintained its upward trend and registered +6.6% y-o-y growth, reflecting the - OIBDA[7]was EUR 552m, down -5.1% y-o-y in Q2 20, reflecting revenue flow-through including the strong growth of lower margin handset revenues and related higher supply costs as well as
- CapEx[8] totalled EUR 251m with a C/S ratio of 14.0% reflecting more back-end loaded annual deployment also due to COVID-19 while being on track to achieve FY20 coverage targets. Despite some temporary headwinds in the COVID-19 environment (i.e. some supply chain disruptions for LTE elements) the 4G rollout made steady progress while preparing for a ramp-up of 5G. The network proved resilient with major changes in traffic volumes since the beginning of the lockdown; mainly a strong increase in fixed & mobile voice volumes and higher fixed data traffic while mobile data traffic trends remained broadly unchanged. - Consolidated net financial debt[9] of EUR 4,438m as of 30 June 2020 imply a leverage ratio of 1.9x[10] also reflecting the FY19 dividend payment of EUR 506m in May. Leverage remained well below the company's self-defined target ratio of at or below 2.5x. Financial outlook 2020 Telefónica Deutschland achieved the expected robust business development in H1 20 despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, the Company continued to support employees, customers as well as the wider society through a large number of COVID-19 initiatives. The operational core business of Telefónica Deutschland is intact with encouraging signs of recovery post easing of lockdown restrictions. Nevertheless, the Company was not immune to COVID-19 impacts due to restrictions imposed by the German government. In particular, the nationwide closure of O2 shops between mid-March and the end of April resulted in weaker trading and muted prepaid dynamics mainly due to Wifi-offloading during lockdown. In addition, the worldwide travel restrictions led to reduced roaming revenues. Lockdown restrictions also impacted the 4G roll-out in H1 20 (i.e. access to sites and logistics centres as well as temporary disruptions in the supply chain for key LTE elements). These topics have been largely resolved by now and the Company successfully achieved the first milestone of the FY20 coverage obligations within the granted grace period (end of Jul-20). H1 C/S reflects the back-end loaded annual network roll-out. However, the COIVD-19 environment is expected to have an impact on the overall FY20 Capex deployment. Telefónica Deutschland is on track to achieve its FY20 coverage obligations. At the same time, the Company is preparing 5G network roll-out in Germany's top 5 cities. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the management team has continuously been monitoring and analysing the development of the COVID-19 related restrictions and their impact on the company. In this context, Telefónica Deutschland confirms its financial outlook for FY20 for revenue and OIBDA while anticipating C/S to be below the initially envisaged 17-18%.
Telefónica Deutschland operating performance in H1 20 Operating performance in mobile As of 30 June 2020, Telefónica Deutschland's mobile customer accesses reached 43.5m (+0.7% y-o-y) driven by strong +5.3% y-o-y growth of the mobile postpaid ex M2M base which increased to 22.9m accesses. Thus, mobile postpaid accounted for 52.6% of the company's total mobile base, a plus of +2.3 p.p. y-o-y. M2M accesses came to 1.3m at the end of June; +13.4% y-o-y. The mobile prepaid base declined -5.0% y-o-y reflecting ongoing prepaid to contract migration trends in the market as well as inactive SIM-card disconnections. Mobile postpaid[12] registered +347k net additions in H1 20 (+158k in Q2 20) compared to +641k in H1 19 (+357k in Q2 19) reflecting a gradual recovery of trading momentum post lockdown with sustained customer demand for the well-performing O2 Free portfolio while performance of partner brands remained solid. M2M saw +116k net additions in H1 20 (+78k in Q2 20) versus -34k net disconnections a year ago of which Mobile prepaid posted -773k net disconnections in the first half-year (-366k in Q2 20) compared to -208k in prior year period (+3k in Q2 19) reflecting the continued weaker demand for prepaid offers due to ongoing prepaid to postpaid migration trends in the market as well as some seasonality. Postpaid10 churn remained stable y-o-y at low levels of 1.5% in H1 20, while churn in the O2 brand continued to be at even lower levels of 1.2% in H1 20, an improvement of 0.1 p.p. y-o-y. These positive churn trends are mainly driven by the Company's retention focus supported by sustained network quality improvements and some tailwinds from COVID-19 lower churn entries towards the end of the period. The implied annualised churn rate in H1 20 improved to 14.3% vs. 15.1% in H1 19, thus providing a clear proof point for sustained quality improvements and excellent customer experience on the O2 network. LTE customer base climbed to 25.3m[13] accesses as of 30 June 2020, up +25.6% y-o-y, fuelled by the sustained demand for high-speed mobile data services. LTE-penetration across the base reached 60.1%, up +12.1p.p. y-o-y while LTE penetration in postpaid continues to be significantly higher (~75%). ARPU trends in the first half of 2020 are reflecting the lockdown related headwinds on roaming, trading and demand for prepaid packages due to Wifi-offloading as well as further regulatory effects. In combination, these are an offsetting factor for the ARPU accretive effects from the O2 Free portfolio and value-added services. Blended mobile ARPU was EUR 9.7 in the first six months of 2020, down -1.9% y-o-y. Prepaid ARPU of EUR 5.9 was up +0.8% y-o-y in H1 20 mainly on the back of fewer inactive SIM-cards. Postpaid10 ARPU stood at EUR 13.5 in H1 20 a decline of -5.5% y-o-y on the back of the before mentioned factors. Own brand postpaid ARPU was down -1.0% y-o-y in H1 20. Excluding the COVID-19 related loss of roaming revenues, own brand ARPU resumed its growth path in June, up +0.7% y-o-y. Operating performance in fixed The fixed broadband customer base stood at 2.2m accesses at the end of June 2020, up +3.8% y-o-y, driven by a +10.4% y-o-y step-up of the VDSL base to 1.7m; now representing 77% of the fixed broadband base. Fixed broadband registered +39k net additions H1 20 (+13k in Q2 20), driven by continued strong demand for VDSL (+77k net additions in H1 20 and +41k in the second quarter). Fixed churn remained at low levels of 0.8% in H1 20, an improvement of +0.2p.p y-o-y. The fixed broadband ARPU continued its growth path and posted +1.6% y-o-y growth to EUR 23.7 in H1 20 (EUR 23.8 in Q2 20, + 1.7% y-o-y) reflecting the steadily growing share of VDSL customers. Telefónica Deutschland financial performance in H1 20 Revenue totalled EUR 3,636m in the first six month 2020, posting +2.0% y-o-y growth (+0.3% y-o-y in Q2 20 at EUR 1,790m) with a slowing trend in the second quarter reflecting ~EUR -63m[14] of combined COVID-19 impacts and other non-recurrent special factors mainly on MSR while handset and fixed business momentum remained strong. Excluding combined special factors, operational revenue trends are intact and posted +3.8% y-o-y growth in H1 20 and Q2, respectively. Mobile service revenue[15] (MSR) registered a -0.5% y-o-y decline and amounted to EUR 2,587m in H1 20 (-3.3% y-o-y in Q2 to EUR 1,275m), facing tougher y-o-y comps after MSR turnaround in Q2 19 and as a result of the vast majority of the before mentioned combined special factors. Excluding combined special factors, operational MSR trends are intact and registered +1.8% y-o-y growth in H1 20 and +1.3% in Q2, reflecting the sustained performance of the own retail business and solid trends in the partner business. Handset revenue continued to be strong on continued demand for high value devices and supported by the online channels during the lockdown related temporary closure of the O2 shops. Handset revenue reached EUR 661m (+10.9% y-o-y) in H1 20 and EUR 322m (+14.4% y-o-y) in Q2. Fixed revenue maintained their upward trend and posted +5.1% y-o-y growth at EUR 386m in H1 20 (+4.3% y-o-y at EUR 193m in Q2) on the back of sustained retail customer base growth driven by strong VDSL demand. Thus, fixed retail revenue posted even stronger y-o-y growth of +7.2% and +6.6% in H1 and Q2, respectively. Other income totalled EUR 56m in H1 20 (-27.7% y-o-y) and is mainly related to the capitalisation of network rollout costs. Operating expenses totalled EUR 2,614m (including exceptional effects[16] of EUR -6m) in H1 20, an increase of + 2.1% y-o-y (EUR 1,266min Q2, +0.3% y-o-y), mainly driven by higher supply costs. - Supplies reached EUR 1,171m in H1 20, +7.0% higher y-o-y (EUR 567m in Q2, + 7.7% y-o-y) mainly reflecting strong handset demand and related hardware cost of sale (54% of supplies in Q2). Also, connectivity-related cost of sales (41% of supplies in Q2) were slightly higher y-o-y reflecting the COVID-19 driven increase of mobile and fixed voice volumes as well as higher fixed data traffic on the network. - Personnel expenses declined by -3.3% y-o-y in H1 20 to EUR 292m and -6.7% y-o-y in Q2 to EUR 142m, supported by y-o-y lower restructuring costs (EUR -1m in H1 20 vs. EUR -6m in prior year) and a lower FTE base versus prior year as an offsetting factor for the inflation-related pay rises as of 1 December 2019. - Other operating expenses[17]were EUR 1,150m in H1 20 (EUR 557m in Q2) including exceptionaleffects of EUR -5m in the first six months (EUR -16m in H1 19) mainly related with the sale of spectrum assets. These costs were lower by -1.0% y-o-y in H1 (-4.6% y-o-y in Q2) predominantly as a reflection of commercial activities. Commercial costs and non-commercial costs made up 67% and 29%, respectively, in the January to June period. Group fees totalled EUR 16m in in the six months period (EUR 8m in Q2), lower by -6.5% y-o-y.
Depreciation & Amortisation totalled EUR 1,110m in the six months period to June, a y-o-y decline of -8.6%, mainly due to individual assets in PPE reaching the end of their useful life. The operating loss for the first six month of the year improved to EUR -30m versus an operating loss of EUR -131m in the prior year. The net financial expenses accounted for EUR -32m in H1 20 compared to EUR -26m in the same period 2019. The Company reported no material income tax expenses in the first six month of 2020. The net loss stood at EUR -62m in the January to June 2020 period, compared to a net loss of EUR -157m in the same period of the prior year. CapEx[20]came to EUR 475m in H1 20 with a C/S ratio of 13.1% (EUR 251m in Q2, C/S ratio of 14.0%) reflecting more back-end loaded annual deployment also due to COVID-19 while being on track to achieve FY20 coverage targets. Despite some temporary headwinds in the tough COVID-19 environment (i.e. supply chain disruptions for LTE elements) the 4G rollout made steady progress while preparing for a ramp-up of 5G. The network proved resilient with major changes in traffic volumes since the beginning of the lockdown; mainly a strong increase in fixed & mobile voice volumes and higher fixed data traffic while mobile data traffic trends remained broadly unchanged. Operating cash flow (OIBDA minus CapEx20 amounted to EUR 604m in H1 20, up +2.8% y-o-y despite the challenging COVID-19 environment and other non-recurrent special factors. Free cash flow (FCF)[21]was EUR 316m in H1 20. Lease payments, primarily for leased lines and antenna sites, amounted to EUR -336m. As a result, FCFaL stood at EUR -21m for the reporting period compared to
Consolidated net financial debt[22] amounted to EUR 4,438m as of 30 June 2020 with a leverage ratio of 1.9x[23], also reflecting the FY19 dividend payment of EUR 506m in May. Leverage remained well below the company's self-defined target ratio of at or below 2.5x. This leaves comfortable leverage headroom with regards to the company's BBB-rating by Fitch. APPENDIX - DATA TABLES
Further information Telefónica Deutschland Holding AG Investor Relations Georg-Brauchle-Ring 50 80992 München Christian Kern, Director Investor Relations; (m) +44 7517 999208 Marion Polzer, Head of Investor Relations; (m) +49 176 7290 1221 Eugen Albrecht, Senior Investor Relations Officer; (m) +49 176 3147 5260 (t) +49 89 2442 1010 www.telefonica.de/investor-relations
Disclaimer:
This document contains statements that constitute forward-looking statements and expectations about Telefónica Deutschland Holding AG (in the following "the Company" or "Telefónica Deutschland") that reflect the current views and assumptions of Telefónica Deutschland's management with respect to future events, including financial projections and estimates and their underlying assumptions, statements regarding plans, objectives and expectations which may refer, among others, to the intent, belief or current prospects of the customer base, estimates regarding, among others, future growth in the different business lines and the global business, market share, financial results and other aspects of the activity and situation relating to the Company. Forward-looking statements are based on current plans, estimates and projections. The forward-looking statements in this document can be identified, in some instances, by the use of words such as "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "believes", and similar language or the negative thereof or by forward-looking nature of discussions of strategy, plans or intentions. Such forward-looking statements, by their nature, are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and generally beyond Telefónica Deutschland's control and other important factors that could cause actual developments or results to materially differ from those expressed in or implied by the Company's forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include those discussed or identified in fuller disclosure documents filed by Telefónica Deutschland with the relevant Securities Markets Regulators, and in particular, with the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht - BaFin). The Company offers no assurance that its expectations or targets will be achieved. Analysts and investors, and any other person or entity that may need to take decisions, or prepare or release opinions about the shares / securities issued by the Company, are cautioned not to place undue reliance on those forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this document. Past performance cannot be relied upon as a guide to future performance. Except as required by applicable law, Telefónica Deutschland undertakes no obligation to revise these forward-looking statements to reflect events and circumstances after the date of this presentation, including, without limitation, changes in Telefónica Deutschland's business or strategy or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. The financial information and opinions contained in this document are unaudited and are subject to change without notice. This document contains summarised information or information that has not been audited. In this sense, this information is subject to, and must be read in conjunction with, all other publicly available information, including if it is necessary, any fuller disclosure document published by Telefónica Deutschland. None of the Company, its subsidiaries or affiliates or by any of its officers, directors, employees, advisors, representatives or agents shall be liable whatsoever for any loss however arising, directly or indirectly, from any use of this document its content or otherwise arising in connection with this document. This document or any of the information contained herein do not constitute, form part of or shall be construed as an offer or invitation to purchase, subscribe, sale or exchange, nor a request for an offer of purchase, subscription, sale or exchange of shares / securities of the Company, or any advice or recommendation with respect to such shares / securities. This document or a part of it shall not form the basis of or relied upon in connection with any contract or commitment whatsoever. These written materials are especially not an offer of securities for sale or a solicitation of an offer to purchase securities in the United States, Canada, Australia, South Africa and Japan. Securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration under the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or an exemption there from. No money, securities or other consideration from any person inside the United States is being solicited and, if sent in response to the information contained in these written materials, will not be accepted. [1] Of which COVID-19 impacts accounted for ~EUR -38m at revenue level and ~EUR -19m at OIBDA level in Q2 20; the remainder is related to other non-recurrent special factors, respectively.
29.07.2020 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG. |
Language: | English |
Company: | Telefónica Deutschland Holding AG |
Georg-Brauchle-Ring 50 | |
80992 München | |
Germany | |
Phone: | +49 (0)89 24 42 0 |
Internet: | www.telefonica.de |
ISIN: | DE000A1J5RX9 |
WKN: | A1J5RX |
Listed: | Regulated Market in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Regulated Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart, Tradegate Exchange |
EQS News ID: | 1104461 |
MDAX TecDAX |
End of News | DGAP News Service |
|
1104461 29.07.2020
The information presented here has been provided by our content partner EQS-Group. The originator of the news is the respective issuer, the company relating to the news, a publication service provider (press or information agency) which uses the distribution service of EQS to transmit company news to shareholders, investors, investors or interested parties. The original publications and other company-relevant information can be found at eqs-news.com.
The information you can access does not constitute investment advice. The presentation of our cooperation partners, where the implementation of investment decisions would be possible depending on the individual risk profile, is solely at the discretion of the person using the service. We only present companies of which we are convinced that the range of services and customer service will satisfy discerning investors.
If you are considering leverage products, familiarise yourself with the typical characteristics of the financial instruments beforehand. Take the time to determine the risk content of the planned investment before making an investment decision. Bear in mind that a total loss cannot be ruled out with leverage products.
For newcomers to the subject, we offer various options in both the training and the tools section, through which you can train theoretical knowledge and practical experience and thus improve your skills. The offer ranges from participation in webinars to personal mentoring. The range is continuously being expanded.
1 Lab features are usually functionalities that emerge from the think tank of the investor community. In the early stages, these are experimental functionalities whose development process is largely determined by use and the resulting feedback from the community. When integrating external services or functionalities, the functionality can only be guaranteed to the extent that the individual process elements, such as interfaces, interact with each other.