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bpost SA/NV

Investor Presentation May 5, 2021

3922_rns_2021-05-05_f54087a6-3dfa-43cf-99be-f80172c90976.pdf

Investor Presentation

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First quarter 2021 results Analyst call

Dirk Tirez, CEO a.i. Leen Geirnaerdt, CFO

6 May 2021

Investor presentation

Interim financial report 1Q21

Financial Calendar

12.05.2021 Ordinary General Meeting of Shareholders

05.08.2021 (17:45 CET) Quarterly results 2Q21

09.11.2021 (17:45 CET) Quarterly results 3Q21

More on corporate.bpost.be/investors

Disclaimer

This presentation is based on information published by bpost group in its First Quarter 2021 Interim Financial Report, made available on May 5th, 2021 at 5.45pm CET on corporate.bpost.be/investors. This information forms regulated information as defined in the Royal Decree of November 14th, 2007. The information in this document may include forward-looking statements1 , which are based on current expectations and projections of management about future events. By their nature, forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future whether or not outside the control of the Company. Such factors may cause actual results, performance or developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Accordingly, no assurance is given that such forward-looking statements will prove to have been correct. They speak only as at the date of the Presentation and the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect actual results, changes in assumptions or changes in factors affecting these statements. This material is not intended as and does not constitute an offer to sell any securities or a solicitation of any offer to purchase any securities.

Strong start to the year driven by continued growth in parcels and e-commerce logistics on both sides of the Atlantic, and lower than expected impact of mail volume decline in Belgium

Highlights of 1Q21

Group operating income

€ 1,019.9m up 9.1% compared to last year's pre COVID-19 first quarter

Group adjusted EBIT

€ 115.5m 11.3% EBIT margin

up € +39.9m compared to prior year

Mail & Retail

€ 70.6m 13.9% EBIT margin

  • Total operating income at € 506.8m (+1.4%) driven by higher volume driven intersegment income related to parcels volumes, partially compensated by lower revenues in Retail and lower than expected impact of the mail volume decline supported by a positive price and mix impact
  • Underlying mail volume decline at -7.8%
  • Adjusted EBIT up € +5.5m (+8.4%)

Parcels & Logistics Eurasia

€ 37.3m 13.0% EBIT margin

  • Total operating income at € 287.8m (+34.8%) driven by thriving e-commerce both domestically (Parcels BeNe +39.2%) and abroad (Crossborder +43.1%)
  • Operating income Parcels B2X1 increased by +51.0% driven by organic volumes at +54.1% from continued momentum in e-commerce development
  • Adjusted EBIT up € +20.4m and more than doubling, with margin improvement driven by elevated proportion of parcels volumes handled through the integrated network

Parcels & Logistics N. Am.

€ 8.2m 2.9% EBIT margin

  • Total operating income at € 282.1m (+7.9%) driven by continued strong growth at Radial from existing customers and new business signed in 2020.
  • Adjusted EBIT increase of € +15.7m to € 8.2m driven by growth in operating income and operating leverage at Radial

Initial 2021 guidance raised, group adjusted EBIT expected to be above € 310m

1Q21

1Q21 EBIT above expectations, driven by continued volume growth in Parcels & Logistics and lower than expected impact of mail decline 1Q21

1 Adjusted excludes items that are non-recurring in nature and significant (> € 20m). All profits or losses on disposal of activities are adjusted whatever the amount they represent, as well as the amortization and impairment on the intangible assets recognized throughout the Purchase Price Allocation (PPA) of the acquisitions. Reversals of provisions whose addition had been excluded from income are also adjusted whatever the amount they represent.

FCF 194.2 147.4 246.2 160.0 -35.0% Net Debt at March 31 619.9 388.3 619.9 388.3 -37.4% Capex 20.5 19.6 20.5 19.6 -4.2% Average # FTEs and interims 34,695 37,602 34,695 37,602 8.4%

2 2

Key financials 1Q21

€ million Reported Adjusted1
1Q20 1Q21 1Q20 1Q21 % ↑ 1
Total operating income 934.6 1,019.9 934.6 1,019.9 9.1%
Operating expenses 797.4 842.7 797.4 842.7 5.7%
EBITDA 137.2 177.2 137.2 177.2 29.2%
Depreciation & Amortization 66.1 64.9 61.5 61.7 0.3%
EBIT 71.0 112.3
1
75.6 115.5
1
52.8%
Margin (%) 7.6% 11.0% 8.1% 11.3% 2
Financial result -4.3 -2.5 -4.3 -2.5 -40.8%
Profit before tax 71.5 109.8 76.1 113.0 48.5% services
Income tax expense 23.6 29.2
1
23.8 29.9
1
25.6%
Net profit 47.9 80.6 52.2 83.0 59.0%

Amortization and impairments of intangibles recognized during PPA are adjusted, leading to increase in EBIT (€ +3.2m) and income tax expense (€ +0.8m)

Adjusted FCF excludes the cash Radial receives on behalf of its customers for performing billing

Results by segment 1Q21

€ million

M&R PaLo Eurasia PaLo N. Am. Corp Eliminations Group
External operating income 446.9 283.9 281.1 7.9 0.0 1,019.9
Intersegment operating income 59.9 3.9 0.9 102.6 -167.3 0.0
Total operating income 506.8 287.8 282.1 110.6 -167.3 1,019.9
Operating expenses 414.6 245.5 256.7 93.3 -167.3 842.7
EBITDA 92.2 42.3 25.4 17.3 177.2
Depreciation & Amortization 22.0 5.7 19.2 17.9 64.9
Reported EBIT 70.2 36.6 6.2 -0.6 112.3
Margin (%) 13.9% 12.7% 2.2% -0.6% 11.0%
Adjusted EBIT 70.6 37.3 8.2 -0.6 115.5
Margin (%) 13.9% 13.0% 2.9% -0.6% 11.3%

Top-line decrease driven by COVID-19 impacts on retail and lower than expected impact of domestic mail volume decline 1Q21 – M&R

M&R external operating income, € million 2 3 4 5 Transactional -3.1 457.8 -0.1 1Q20 Advertising -0.2 Press 0.7 Proximity and convenience retail network -8.2 Value added services 1Q21 446.9 -10.8 Transactional -8.8% in 1Q20, slightly supported by COVID-19 communication in Mar-21. continued e-substitution, higher acceptance of e-documents at the receivers' side and digitization of C2B communication through mobile apps. Domestic Mail Operating income decline at € -3.4m: • € -1.0m working days impact, • € -21.5m volume (-7.8% underlying volume decline) • € +19.1m from price and mix impact. Press -1.0% underlying volume decline, benefiting from a good performance in Periodicals. 3 1 retail network Lower Ubiway retail revenues from especially in travel environments. less ATM transactions. 3 5 1 2

-9.6% underlying volume decline against

No change in known structural trends of

Advertising

-5.4% underlying volume decline against softer comparable base in Mar-20:

  • ‐ -22.4% YTD Feb-21, against tough comparable base of -3.9% from pre COVID-19 months.
  • ‐ +41.1% Mar-21, better than Mar-20 at -39.4% from COVID-19 ban on promotions and non-essential retail closure during lockdown of Mar-20.

Proximity and convenience

reduced footfall as a result of COVID-19,

Decline in banking & finance revenues due to the low interest rate environment and

4

Value added services

Higher revenues from fines solution which were negatively impacted during lockdown of Mar-20.

EBIT increase driven by high parcel volumes handled through the mail network and lower than expected impact of mail decline 1Q21 – M&R

€ million

Mail & Retail 1Q20 1Q21 % ↑
External operating income 457.8 446.9 -2.4%
Transactional 193.3 190.2 -1.6%
Advertising 47.8 47.6 -0.4%
Press 86.1 86.0 -0.1%
Proximity and convenience retail network 103.1 94.9 -7.9%
Value added services 27.5 28.2 2.7%
Intersegment operating income 42.2 59.9 41.8%
Total operating income 500.0 506.8 1.4%
Operating expenses 413.8 414.6 0.2%
EBITDA 86.1 92.2 7.1%
Depreciation & Amortization 21.6 22.0 2.1%
Reported EBIT 64.6 70.2 8.7%
Margin (%) 12.9% 13.9%
Adjusted EBIT 65.2 70.6 8.4%
Margin (%) 13.0% 13.9%
Additional KPIs
Underlying Mail volume decline -9.9% -7.8%
Transactional -8.8% -9.6%
Advertising -16.5% -5.4%
Press -5.2% -1.0%

Key takeaways 1Q21

  • Total operating income up € +6.8m (+1.4%) driven by (1) higher intersegment operating income related to higher parcels volumes, partially compensated by (2) lower Ubiway retail revenues and (3) lower than expected impact of mail volume decline combined with price increases and mix impact.
  • Operating expenses (incl. adjusted D&A) remained nearly stable (€ 1.3m or +0.3%):
  • ‐ Higher payroll & interim costs driven by (1) headcount from higher parcel volumes and (2) price impact amongst other from salary indexation, merit increases and phasing holidays; together with higher costs for fleet and lower recoverable VAT
  • ‐ Compensated by the favourable evolution of the FTE wage mix, the decrease of material costs from Ubiway retail and increased sorting activities cross-charged to PaLo Eurasia driven by growth in parcel volumes handled through the mail network.
  • M&R adjusted EBIT increased by € +5.5m to € 70.6m

PaLo Eurasia revenue driven by thriving e-commerce both domestically and abroad

PaLo Eurasia external operating income, € million

Parcels BeNe

Total Parcels BeNe revenues up € 41.0m (+39.2%) driven by growth in Parcels B2X and strong quarter at Dynalogic.

Parcels B2X1 revenues up 51.0% driven by volume growth of +54.1% fueled by thriving online sales.

Negative price/mix -3.1% fully mixdriven.

E-commerce logistics

Revenue up € +3.8m (+9.6%) mainly driven by:

  • ‐ Strong organic growth at Active Ants from existing customers and positive impact of lockdown and closure of non-essential retail shops in NL.
  • ‐ Radial Europe growth driven by UK and the new fulfilment site in Poland which opened in 3Q20. Opening of the third site in DE in February 2021.

Cross-border

Revenue up € +28.6m (+43.1%) driven by:

  • ‐ Asian parcel volumes via rail transport of containers as an alternative to air freight, while COVID-19 reduced air freight capacity and closure of international borders had a negative impact in 1Q20.
  • ‐ Continued growth in UK business driven by new customers, and higher custom service revenues in light of Brexit.
  • ‐ Partly offset by declining crossborder postal business where growth in inbound parcels could not fully compensate the decline in both inbound & outbound 2 mail volumes 3

1 Parcels B2X sales and volumes do not include EuroSprinters and Dynagroup

Strong growth in parcels efficiently handled through the mail network doubled EBIT and steeply improved margin 1Q21 – PaLo Eurasia

€ million

Parcels & Logistics Europe and Asia 1Q20 1Q21 % ↑
External operating income 210.5 283.9 34.9%
Parcels BeNe 104.7 145.7 39.2%
E-commerce logistics 39.3 43.1 9.6%
Cross-border 66.5 95.1 43.1%
Intersegment operating income 3.0 3.9 29.0%
Total operating income 213.5 287.8 34.8%
Operating expenses 192.2 245.5 27.8%
EBITDA 21.3 42.3 98.5%
Depreciation & Amortization 5.1 5.7 11.3%
Reported EBIT 16.2 36.6 126.1%
Margin (%) 7.6% 12.7%
Adjusted EBIT 16.9 37.3 121.2%
Margin (%) 7.9% 13.0%
Additional KPIs
Parcels volume growth1 25.2% 54.1%

Key takeaways 1Q21

  • Total operating income up € +74.3m or +34.8% driven by positive revenue development in all revenue lines, especially Parcels BeNe (€ +41.0m, +39.2%) and Cross-border (€ +28.6m, +43.1%).
  • Operating expenses (incl. adjusted D&A) were up € -53.9m (+27.4%), mainly explained by higher volume-linked variable costs translating into higher transport and parcels insurance costs across all the business lines. PaLo EA recorded higher intersegment operating expenses charged by M&R driven by strong parcels volumes growth in the integrated last-mile mail & parcels network.
  • Adjusted EBIT increased by € +20.4m, more than doubling to reach € 37.3m. The steep margin development is explained by the strong growth in parcels volumes handled through the integrated network with benefits of scale of the existing rounds.

1 1Q20 restated to reflect Parcels B2X volume growth

Robust and profitable e-commerce fulfilment growth at PaLo North America 1Q21 – PaLo N. Am.

PaLo North America external operating income, € million

E-commerce logistics

YoY increase of +10.7% (+20.4% at constant exchange rate). Revenue increase mainly driven by Radial North America recording continued high growth from existing customers (+25.6%) and of new clients launched in 2020, partly

offset by some client churn. Landmark US, Apple Express and FDM recorded strong volumes from existing and new customers fueled by e-commerce development YoY.

International mail

Revenue decline (-19.4%, or -11.8% at constant exchange rate) driven by lower volumes in the business mail segment, partially compensated by higher domestic parcels revenues.

Sharp EBIT increase driven by Radial North America

€ million

Parcels & Logistics North America 1Q20 1Q21 % ↑
External operating income 259.9 281.1 8.2%
E-commerce logistics 238.0 263.5 10.7%
International mail 21.9 17.7 -19.4%
Intersegment operating income 1.4 0.9 -31.8%
Total operating income 261.3 282.1 7.9%
Operating expenses 250.9 256.7 2.3%
EBITDA 10.4 25.4 143.7%
Depreciation & Amortization 21.2 19.2 -9.2%
Reported EBIT -10.8 6.2 -
Margin (%) -4.1% 2.2%
Adjusted EBIT -7.4 8.2 -
Margin (%) -2.8% 2.9%
Additional KPIs, adjusted
Radial North America revenue, \$m 215.1 247.1
Radial North America EBITDA, \$m 4.1 17.4
Radial North America EBIT, \$m (12.9) 0.0

Key takeaways 1Q21

  • Total operating income increase of € +20.8m or +7.9% (+17.4% at constant exchange rate) fully driven by E-commerce logistics.
  • Operating expenses (incl. adjusted D&A) increased by € -5.1m (+1.9%, or +10.9% excl. FX) resulting from higher, mainly volumedriven labor costs, transports costs and credit card fees. These effects were partly compensated by reduced fraud chargebacks, productivity gains in fulfilment and cost containment in general.
  • Adjusted EBIT up € +15.7m to € 8.2m driven by positive evolution in E-commerce logistics, mainly from operating leverage at Radial.

Corporate EBIT almost neutral as building sales compensate net costs

€ million
Corporate 1Q20 1Q21 % ↑
External operating income 6.4 7.9 24.3%
Intersegment operating income 90.4 102.6 13.5%
Total operating income 96.8 110.6 14.2%
Operating expenses 77.5 93.3 20.3%
EBITDA 19.3 17.3 -10.3%
Depreciation & Amortization 18.3 17.9 -1.7%
Reported EBIT 1.0 -0.6 -
Margin (%) 1.1% -0.6%
Adjusted EBIT 1.0 -0.6 -
Margin (%) 1.1% -0.6%

Key takeaways 1Q21

  • External revenues up € +1.6m driven by higher building sales.
  • Net operating expenses (incl. D&A) after intersegment operating income increased by € -3.2m mainly driven by a phasing impact related to long-term employee benefits.
  • As a result, adjusted EBIT decreased by € -1.7m YoY to € -0.6m.

Solid cash flow from operating activities before SGEI payment calendar and unwinding of temporary pandemic-related initiatives

Reported ‐ € million

1Q20 1Q21 Delta
+ Cash flow from operating activities 203.6 157.1 -46.6
out of which CF from operating activities before ∆ in WC & provisions 137.7 165.1 27.4
+ Cash flow from investing activities -9.4 -9.7 -0.3
= Free cash flow1 194.2 147.4 -46.8
+ Financing activities -26.6 -193.5 -166.9
= Net cash movement 167.6 -46.1 -213.7
Capex -20.5 -19.6 0.9

CF from operating activities

€ +27.4m variance in "CF from operating activities before change in working capital and provisions", mainly due to higher EBITDA (€ +40.1m) combined with increased tax payments (€ -11.4m).

Change in working capital and provisions (€ -73.9m) of which:

  • € -109.6m evolution of working capital: primarily driven by the expected unwinding of extended payment terms with some suppliers as initiated at the beginning of the pandemic (€ -59.2m), combined with the different payment schedule of SGEI (€ -80.5m received last year in January and which is now scheduled in July this year), and partially offset by increased collections in line with high sales peak in the fourth quarter of 2020.
  • Partly compensated by more cash inflows relating to collected proceeds due to clients in Radial: € +39.3m due to higher level of merchandise sales
  • € -3.6m change in provisions

1Free cash flow = cash flow from operating activities + cash flow from investing activities

CF from investing activities

Proceeds from building sales: € -1.1m vs 1Q20

Capex at € 19.6m decreased by € +0.9m vs 1Q20 and was mainly spent on increased capacity for E-commerce on customer implementations at Radial US, additional sites for Active Ants, Parcels B2X sorting equipment and sustainability initiatives for e-fleet infrastructure.

A great majority of 1Q21 capex is invested in e-commerce and parcels activities.

CF used for financing activities

Decision not to roll over maturing commercial paper in 2021: € -165.7m

1Q21

1Q21 Analyst Presentation

Increased 2021 group EBIT outlook Outlook FY21

In light of the strong first quarter results, and based on current assumptions of normalization for COVID-19 volumes for the rest of the year, bpost now expects the group adjusted EBIT to be above € 310m

Mail & Retail

Total operating income:

  • Underlying Domestic Mail volume decline up to -8%
  • Approved mail pricing of +6.0%
  • Expected post COVID-19 recovery in VAS

7-9% adjusted EBIT margin

Parcels & Logistics Europe & Asia

High single-digit % growth in total operating income with parcels and ecommerce logistics volumes expected to normalize from elevated COVID-19 levels

Operating expenses will include investments to grow omni-commerce logistics in Europe 9-11% adjusted EBIT margin

Parcels & Logistics North America

Mid- to high single-digit % growth in total operating income driven by Radial existing customers growth and new client launches, normalized for 2020 COVID-19 spike

4-5% adjusted EBIT margin

Group

Low to mid-single-digit % growth in total operating income

Adjusted EBIT above € 310m

Gross capex around € 200-220m, geared towards the strategy to grow omni-commerce logistics

Dividend

2021 dividend in the range of 30-50% of IRFS net profit and payable in May 2022 after the General Shareholders' Meeting, in accordance with the new dividend policy

Clear management priorities to accelerate transformation and deliver results

Preparation of the end of year (EOY) peak

  • Plan Q4 2021 in Q1 and Q2 2021
  • Adopt measures to improve margin and capacity against last year's EOY peak of performance, combined with budgeted investments in additional capacity, all as included in our updated guidance

Introduce structural initiatives to improve performance and profitability

  • Focus on cost reduction and operational efficiency in Mail & Retail Belgium
  • Reduce overhead and headquarters costs
  • Grow e-commerce logistics on both sides of the Atlantic
  • Conduct active portfolio management and allocate capital to booming e-commerce business

Management

The new Board of Directors is in place and the selection of the new CEO has been accelerated

Composition of the Board of Directors

  • The Board of Directors includes a new Board chairwoman, new independent members, and one State director
  • The new Board members will further strengthen bpost's experience in transforming businesses, innovation and people management

Accelerated selection of the new CEO

  • The Board of Directors has accelerated the search and selection process for the new bpost CEO
  • The Remuneration Committee, assisted by Korn Ferry, is aligned on the CEO profile and meets weekly to ensure a solid profile
  • We expect to onboard the CEO during the summer

bpost Board of directors (as of 12 May, 2021)

Audrey Hanard Chairperson

Jos Donvil Non-Executive Director (renewal) Ray Stewart Independent Director

Caroline Ven Non-Executive Director

Laurent Levaux Non-Executive Director

Mohssin El Ghabri Non-Executive Director (new) Michael Stone Independent Director

Jules Noten Independent Director (new)

Sonja Rottiers Independent Director (new)

Balance Sheet

€ million € million
Assets Dec 31, 2020 Mar 31, 2021 Equity and Liabilities Dec 31, 2020 Mar 31, 2021
PPE 1,138.0 1,145.9 Total equity 583.8 692.9
Intangible assets 771.7 790.4 Interest-bearing loans & borrowings 1,443.2 1,299.4
Investments in associates and joint ventures 0.1 0.1 Employee benefits 320.0 318.4
Other assets 54.1 51.7 Trade & other payables 1,487.0 1,333.5
Trade & other receivables 826.6 670.8 Provisions 27.0 24.3
Inventories 32.7 31.6 Derivative instruments 0.3 0.3
Cash & cash equivalents 948.1 911.2 Other liabilities 13.2 33.5
Assets held for sale 103.3 100.5
Total Assets 3,874.5 3,702.3 Total Equity and Liabilities 3,874.5 3,702.3

Main balance sheet movements

The decrease of trade and other receivables is mainly driven by the settlement of the SGEI for the delivery of newspapers and periodicals for the year 2020 and the peak sales of year-end 2020.

The decrease of cash and cash equivalents is due to the closure in the first quarter of 2021 of the commercial paper program and the unwinding of the temporary initiatives set up in the context of the pandemic in 2020.

The increase of equity was mainly explained by the realized profit of (€ +80.6m) and the exchange differences on translation of foreign operations (€ +28.1m).

The decrease of interest-bearing loans and borrowings was mainly due to the decision to reimburse the maturing commercial paper during the first quarter 2021 (€ -165.0m), partially compensated by the increase of leases and the unfavorable impact of exchange rates.

Net debt decreased by € 106.9m in 1Q21, from € 495.2m to 388.3m.

Trade and other payables decreased mainly due to the phasing of year-end peak 2020 and the unwinding of some temporary initiatives set up in the context of the pandemic, partially offset by the advance received of the SGEI compensation for the delivery of newspapers and periodicals.

Financing Structure & Liquidity

€ million
Available Liquidity Dec 31, 2020 Mar 31, 2021
Cash & cash equivalents 948.1 911.2
Cash in network 167.2 163.2
Transit accounts 32.2 59.0
Cash payment transactions under execution -30.9 -10.5
Bank current accounts 574.6 469.6
Short-term deposits 205.0 230.0
Undrawn revolving credit facilities 375.0 375.0
Syndicated facility - 10/2024 300.0 300.0
Bilateral facility - 06/2025 75.0 75.0
Total Available Liquidity 1,323.1 1,286.2
€ million
External Funding Dec 31, 2020 Mar 31, 2021
Long-term
Long-term bond1
(1.25% - 07/2026)
650.0 650.0
Bank loans 159.9 166.9
Amortizing Loan (€ 100m) ‐ 12/2022 9.1 9.1
Term Loan (\$ 185m) - 07/2023 150.8 157.8
Short-term
Bank loans: Amortizing Loan (€ 100m) ‐ 12/2022 9.1 9.1
Commercial Papers 165.1 0.0
Total External Funding 984.1 826.0

Liquidity: Cash & Committed credit lines

Total available liquidity on March 31, 2021 consisted out of € 911.2m cash & cash equivalents of which € 699.6m is readily available on bank current accounts and as short-term deposits.

In addition, bpost group has 2 undrawn revolving credit facilities for a total amount of € 375.0m.

External Funding & Debt Amortization (excl. IFRS16 lease liabilities)

Out of € 826.0m external funding on balance sheet on March 31, 2021:

‐ € 9.1m need to be repaid in 4Q21 (i.e., the current portion of the amortizing loan)

1 € 650m long-term bond with a carrying amount of € 643.9m, the difference being the re-offer price and issuance fees.

Key contact

Antoine Lebecq Head of Investor Relations

Email: [email protected] Direct: +32 (0) 2 276 29 85 Mobile: +32 (0) 471 81 24 77 Address: bpost group, Centre Monnaie, 1000 Brussels, Belgium

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