Quarterly Report • Aug 17, 2021
Quarterly Report
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AS OF 30 JUNE 2021
Regulated information EMBARGO – 17 August 2021, 08.15 CET Roularta Media Group
2a. Condensed consolidated income statement
2b. Condensed consolidated statement of comprehensive income
Condensed consolidated balance sheet
Main risks and uncertainties for the remaining months of the financial year
Declaration concerning the information given in this half-yearly financial report
This interim report is to be read in conjunction with the consolidated balance sheet and income statement of Roularta Media Group NV, referred to below as the Group, and the accompanying notes (see point 6 below). This interim report has been issued in response to the Royal Decree of 14 November 2007 on the obligations of issuers of financial instruments. The figures are not audited.
The transition to digital revenue has succeeded thanks to consistent investments, 1) in the readership market with the online kiosk and the "Mijn Magazines" app, 2) in the advertising market with programmatic and native advertising, 3) through considerable investments in a data strategy with respect for privacy. Digital advertising revenue currently represents almost 30% of total advertising revenues.
Investments in a state-of-the-art printing press and finishing machines achieve control over the various steps in internal and external printing work, leading to higher value creation. Leaving the joint venture culture behind is also ensuring better integration and sustainable value creation.
Despite the recent acquisition of the joint ventures and the payment of a dividend of € 11.7 million, the cash position is € 89 million, compared to € 91 million at the end of 2020. Thanks to this robust – and debt-free – balance, strategic investments and acquisitions can create rapid additional value.
Thanks to positive net results and the substantial cash position, the payment of dividends can be continued with an expected € 1 gross over the current year. Also in the coming years we would like to propose this distribution to the shareholders.
The first half of last year was heavily impacted by Covid-19, but Roularta's revenue has recovered substantially in the first half of this year. Revenue closed at € 141.7 million, an absolute increase of € 21.1 million compared to the first half of last year and roughly in line with the first half of 2019. The continuity of activities has always been guaranteed, as it was last year. However Covid-19 has influenced Roularta's results this year as well.
Furthermore, the evolution of the new Roularta from a B2B to a B2C environment has continued, because more revenue was generated in the first half of the year from the readership market (€ 58.9 million) than from advertising (€ 53.1 million), whereas the opposite was still true in 2019. Nonetheless, advertising revenue is € 11.9 million higher in 2021 due to the lockdowns last year. We are still feeling the effects of this on advertising income, due to the closure of many businesses in the first quarter of 2021.
Subscription revenues have risen by € 6.8 million this year, after a first half of 2020 that was already extremely strong. They have risen by € 9.8 million compared to the first half of 2019. This is thanks to internal growth and the integration of the full acquisition of the joint venture brands Plus Magazine in the Netherlands, Plus Magazine in Germany and Télépro since 1 April 2021.
Other revenue is still affected by Covid-19, since events and reader travel were still not possible in the first half of the year, unless they happened digitally. The revenue from printing for third parties is already higher than in 2020, but not yet up to the 2019 level.
Digitisation is continuing, with the launch of the "Mijn Magazines" app and the "Mijn Magazines" online kiosk in the second half of the year. Various payment plans are offered to read all the magazines in hybrid format or entirely digitally. A unique, innovative subscription plan will be launched in September, the "family subscription". This means that a subscriber with a total of three family members can make use of their subscription to gain digital access to 30 titles in the "Mijn Magazines" app or the "Mijn Magazines" online kiosk. Then the subscriber receives one magazine (or more, if desired) delivered by post to their home, and they can read all the articles in the 30 magazines through the app or digital kiosk.
Programmatic and native advertising are also providing strong growth in digital advertising income (+65% on last year).
The EBITDA has ended at € 22.7 million, compared to € 5.4 million last year, or double-digit 16.0% of revenue, compared to 4.5% last year. Besides the increased revenue and lower paper prices, the group is reducing its costs for services thanks to efficiency projects and the temporary unemployment (furlough) scheme. Moreover, the group has booked a one-off capital gain, in line with the IFRS guidelines, of € 5.8 million due to the full acquisition of the aforementioned joint ventures. Without this one-off effect, we see a tripling of the EBITDA in comparison to the coronavirus year 2020 and, what is more, growth of almost 60% in comparison to the € 10.7 million EBITDA in the first half of 2019.
Mediafin (50% Roularta - De Tijd/L'Echo) has also substantially increased its revenue, EBITDA and net result, all of which are higher in 2021 than in 2020 or even 2019. Advertising revenue has increased by 24% and the readership market is continuing to progress with 12% growth compared to the record year 2020. The stand-alone EBITDA of € 8.6 million and the net result of € 5.1 million have also increased significantly in comparison to the first half of last year. After depreciations for the brands De Tijd, L'Echo and BeReal & BePublic, the 50% end result is € 1.6 million, the amount that is included in the Roularta Media Group EBITDA. This year, Mediafin paid Roularta a dividend of € 5.3 million, whereas last year there was no dividend payment.
In total, € 20.8 million EBITDA was realised by the fully consolidated businesses, compared to € 4.9 million last year and € 9.6 million in 2019, and € 1.9 million by the associated businesses and joint ventures (their result via equity mutation), as compared to € 0.5 million last year and € 1.1 million in 2019.
An impairment of € 7.6 million was booked on a few brands in the group that are suffering from the ongoing impact of the coronavirus, along with the normal write-downs, leading to a final EBIT of € 6.6 million.
At the end of the first half of the year, after paying out a dividend of € 11.7 million and following the acquisition of Plus Magazine in the Netherlands and Germany, and Télépro in Belgium, Roularta has maintained a strong balance sheet, with a cash position of almost € 89 million compared to € 91 million at the end of 2020, thanks to a strong operational gross cash flow of € 20.2 million, compared to € 3.9 million in the first half of 2020.
1.1 Consolidated key figures
| in thousands of euros |
30/06/2021 | 30/06/2020 | Trend | Trend (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| INCOME STATEMENT | ||||
| Sales | 141,724 | 120,635 | 21,089 | 17.5% |
| Adjusted sales (1) | 132,082 | 120,635 | 11,447 | 9.5% |
| EBITDA (2) | 22,664 | 5,438 | 17,226 | 316.8% |
| EBITDA - margin | 16.0% | 4.5% | ||
| EBIT (3) | 6,621 | -1,552 | 8,173 | 526.6% |
| EBIT - margin | 4.7% | -1.3% | ||
| Net finance costs | -87 | -83 | -4 | -4.8% |
| Income taxes | 1,563 | 233 | 1,330 | 570.8% |
| Net result | 8,096 | -1,402 | 9,498 | 677.5% |
| Attributable to minority interests | -298 | -129 | -169 | -131.0% |
| Attributable to equity holders of RMG | 8,394 | -1,273 | 9,667 | 759.4% |
| Net result attributable to equity holders of RMG - margin | 5.9% | -1.1% | 1 | |
| Number of full time equivalents at closing date (4) | 1,268 | 1,191 | 77 | 6.5% |
(1) Adjusted sales = sales on a like-on-like basis with June 2020, excluding changes in the consolidation scope
(2) EBITDA = EBIT + depreciations, write-downs and provisions
(3) EBIT = operating profit, including the share in the result of associated companies and joint ventures
(4) Joint ventures (mainly Mediafin) not included
The consolidated revenue for the first half of the year 2021 increased by 17.5% from € 120.6 to € 141.7 million. If the changes in the consolidation scope due to acquisitions and the newly founded Immovlan BV are disregarded, the absolute increase in revenue year on year is € 11.4 million or an increase of 9.5% on the previous year.
Last year's historic increase in subscriptions (+8.4% in 2020 versus the first half of 2019) has continued this year with an increase of 6.1% excluding acquisitions and 17.9% including acquisitions.
Whereas the first half of 2020 saw a sharp drop in advertising income due to the beginning of the pandemic (-35.5%), the first half of 2021 has been characterised by growth of 28.9%. This means the figures have caught up well since 2020. Income from digital advertising grew faster (+65%) and is at a higher level than before the coronavirus. In magazines, sectors such as automotive, fashion, beauty and tourism were still seriously impacted in the first half of the year. The free media suffered under the partial lockdowns, with the result that the Streekkrant, for example, did not appear in April.
Printing for third parties is also increasing again (+4.2% compared to -18.2% last year). Newsstand sales fell this year by 2.3%, or -12.3% without the newly acquired businesses. Other revenue has increased by 20.2% YoY, but is still impacted by the absence of reader travel and events.
The EBITDA increased from € 5.4 million to € 22.7 million. EBITDA amounted to 16.0 % of revenue compared to 4.5 % in the first half of 2020. The increase has occurred both in the fully consolidated entities (€ +15.9 million) and the associates and joint ventures (€ +1.3 million). In both cases, the strong increase in revenue without a corresponding increase in costs was the main reason for the increased EBITDA. Furthermore, in accordance with IFRS regulations, a capital gain of € 5.8 million was realised on the historic share that the group had in the joint ventures that were recently fully acquired. The 100% acquired joint ventures and Immovlan collectively generated an EBITDA of € 1.8 million, compared to € 0.7 million last year.
The EBIT evolved from € -1.6 million to € 6.6 million, in line with the increase in EBITDA, with the exception of the special write-down of € 7.6 million carried out on a few of the group's brands (Sterck, Flair, Le Vif/L'Express). The events sector, where Sterck is active, underwent several waves of closure due to the coronavirus. Flair, which is also highly dependent on outdoor activities through sales in coupon books at newsstands, was also severely impacted by the coronavirus. Le Vif's revenue from the reader market increased above that of 2020, but the Covid-related impact on advertising recruitment was greater.
The net financing expenses are in line with the first half of 2020.
The net result amounted to € 8.1 million compared to € -1.4 million last year.
| Consolidated key figures (€ per share) | in euro | 30/06/2021 | 30/06/2020 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EBITDA | 1.94 | 0.43 | 1.51 | |
| EBIT | 0.57 | -0.12 | 0.69 | |
| Net result attributable to equity holders of RMG | 0.72 | -0.10 | 0.82 | |
| Net result attributable to equity holders of RMG after dilution | 0.72 | -0.10 | 0.82 | |
| Weighted average number of shares | 11,699,693 | 12,550,800 | -851,107 | |
| Weighted average number of shares after dilution | 11,707,070 | 12,557,458 | -850,388 |
| in thousands of euros | 30/06/2021 | 30/06/2020 | Trend | Trend (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| INCOME STATEMENT | |||||
| Sales | 126,904 | 104,750 | 22,154 | 21.1% | |
| Gross margin | 100,874 | 82,803 | 18,071 | 21.8% | |
| Gross margin on sales | 79.5% | 79.0% | 1 |
The 'Media Brands' segment refers to all brands that are operated by RMG and its shareholdings.
Revenue from the Media Brands segment increased by 21.1% or € 22.2 million, from € 104.8 million to € 126.9 million.
Advertising revenue has increased by 28.9% compared to last year's drop of 35.5%.
Digital advertising revenue increased strongly by 47.8% (compared to a drop last year of 23.9%). Digital revenue far exceeded expectations and even the level it had reached before the pandemic.
Advertising revenue from the newspapers increased slightly by 2.2% (compared to a drop last year of 19.3%).
Revenue from magazine advertising grew by 28.7% (compared to a drop last year of 25.4%).
Advertising revenue from the free papers has increased by 12.6% compared to last year's decrease of 48.8%. Covid-19 is still having a great impact on revenue from the group's free papers, which could not be issued for several weeks when the shops were obliged to close or when shopping was significantly limited in 2020 and 2021.
Revenue from the readership market (subscriptions and newsstand sales) increased by 12.4% compared to the first half of 2020. Without the newly acquired businesses, there is still an internal growth of 1.1%. In line with the public service mission of a media company, all News & Business and Women magazines continued to be published reliably throughout the periods of partial lockdown. All the digital channels continued to provide 24/7 reporting. The gross margin has increased from 79.0 % to 79.5 %. In absolute value, gross margin has increased with € 18.1 million to € 100.9 million.
| in thousands of euros | 30/06/2021 | 30/06/2020 | Trend | Trend (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| INCOME STATEMENT | |||||
| Sales | 31,741 | 30,501 | 1,240 | 4.1% | |
| Gross margin | 18,858 | 16,480 | 2,378 | 14.4% | |
| Gross margin on sales | 59.4% | 54.0% | 1 | -100.00% |
The 'Printing Services' segment refers to pre-press and print shop activities for internal brands and external customers.
The revenue from the Printing Services segment increased with € 1.2 million or 4.1%, from € 30.5 million to € 31.7 million.
The increase of € 1.2 million is a combination of € 2.3 million in growth for in-house printing and a € 1.1 million decline in external printing. Note that the printing work for the JV's has become in-house in stead of external after the acquisition of the JV's end of March 2021. In general, printing activities are not yet on their 2019 level due to postponements and cancellations from Belgian, Dutch and French customers resulting from the pandemic. In absolute value, gross margin has increased with € 2.4 million to € 18.9 million.
Gross margin in percent of revenue rose from 54.0 % to 59.4 %. This can mainly be explained by a drop in the price of paper.
| Balance sheet | in thousands of euros |
30/06/2021 | 31/12/2020 | Trend (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-current assets | 208,952 | 187,928 | 11.2% | |
| Current assets | 153,621 | 149,644 | 2.7% | |
| Balance sheet total | 362,573 | 337,572 | 7.4% | |
| Equity - Group's share | 221,486 | 223,481 | -0.9% | |
| Equity - minority interests | 13,991 | 383 | 3553.0% | |
| Liabilities | 127,096 | 113,708 | 11.8% | |
| Liquidity (5) | 1.5 | 1.5 | -4.2% | |
| Solvency (6) | 64.9% | 66.3% | -2.1% | |
| Net financial cash/(debt) (7) | 82,940 | 85,920 | -3.5% | |
| Gearing (8) | -35.2% | -38.4% | -8.2% |
(5) Liquidity = current assets / current liabilities
(6) Solvency = equity (Group's share + minority interests) / balance sheet tota
(7) Net financial cash/(debt) = current cash - financial debts
(8) Gearing = - net financial cash/(debt)/equity (Group's share + minority interests)
The equity – group share amounted to € 221.5 million on 30 June 2021 compared to € 223.5 million on 31 December 2020. The movement in equity mainly consists of the profit attributable to RMG shareholders in the first half of 2021 (€ 8.4 million) and the payment of the dividend on the 2020 result (€ 11.7 million).
RMG remains free of any bank debts. As of 30 June 2021, the consolidated net financial cash position (= current cash less financial debts) € -82.9 million vs. € -85.9 million as of December 2020 or a decrease of € 3.0 million. On the one hand, the cash dropped by € 1.6 million, and on the other there were an additional € 1.5 million in financial debts from the fully acquired businesses. All of these are IFRS 16 lease liabilities for the buildings and rolling stock that they rent.
Total consolidated investments (CAPEX) in the first half of 2021 amounted to € 17.2 million (2020: € 6.4 million): this represents € 15.9 million in investments in intangible fixed assets and € 1.4 million in tangible fixed assets. The former mainly covers customer portfolios valued at € 10.7 million, purchased from Rossel and CTR Media, and the 'Immovlan' brand (€ 1.0 million) upon the foundation of the Immovlan entity.
Furthermore, RMG invested € 2.7 million in new software, of which a significant proportion was for the new "My Magazines" app. The main investments last year were for new software (€ 1.8 million) and the balance of € 3.2 million for the new Lithoman printing press.
Investments in new entities are discussed in next paragraph.
Payment of the dividend of one euro per share for the financial year 2020 on 1 June 2021.
These prospects will need to be adjusted in the event of substantial new waves of Covid-19.
The prospects for the second half of the year remain positive in terms of subscription revenues. Roularta has succeeded in converting the desire of the consumer for high-quality content into long-term subscriptions. New developments are promising for the future. The launch in September of the new "Family" subscription and the App and the online kiosk "Mijn Magazines" offer good prospects for a favourable development of subscription revenues. We expect the trend in newsstand sales to be in line with the current market.
A further recovery of advertising revenue for printing activities can be expected. Audiovisual media and internet activities will continue to grow in the second half of the year.
In the Printing Services segment, the number of print orders will remain probably below the pre-Covid-19 level. There is also upward pressure on the prices of raw materials to be expected in the short term.
We expect a slower increase in revenue and costs from events and travel in the second half of the year. These will depend on further decisions by the various authorities.
Large fluctuations from month to month and late bookings continue, resulting in insufficient visibility to make a further precise forecast for 2021.
Given the positive results and the substantial cash position we expect to pay out a dividend of € 1 gross over the current year and the coming years.
| in thousands of euros | 30/06/2021 | 30/06/2020 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sales | 141,724 | 120,635 | 21,089 |
| Own construction capitalised | 1,860 | 1,239 | 621 |
| Raw materials, consumables and goods for resale | -24,568 | -23,151 | -1,417 |
| Gross margin | 119,016 | 98,723 | 20,293 |
| % on sales | 84.0% | 81.8% | |
| Services and other goods | -56,766 | -51,658 | -5,108 |
| Personnel | -48,128 | -45,036 | -3,092 |
| Other operating result | 6,660 | 2,865 | 3,795 |
| Share in the result of associated companies and joint ventures | 1,882 | 544 | 1,338 |
| EBITDA | 22,664 | 5,438 | 17,226 |
| % on sales | 16.0% | 4.5% | |
| Depreciation, write-down and provisions | -16,043 | -6,990 | -9,053 |
| Depreciation and write-down of intangible and tangible assets | -7,951 | -6,260 | -1,691 |
| Write-down of debtors and inventories | -59 | -396 | 337 |
| Provisions | -449 | -334 | -115 |
| Impairment losses | -7,584 | - | -7,584 |
| Operating result - EBIT | 6,621 | -1,552 | 8,173 |
| % on sales | 4.7% | -1.3% | |
| Interest income | 61 | 49 | 12 |
| Interest expenses | -148 | -132 | -16 |
| Income taxes | 1,563 | 233 | 1,330 |
| Net result | 8,096 | -1,402 | 9,498 |
| % on sales | 5.7% | -1.2% | |
| Attributable to: | |||
| Minority interests | -298 | -129 | -169 |
| Equity holders of Roularta Media Group | 8,394 | -1,273 | 9,667 |
| in thousands of euros | 30/06/2021 | 30/06/2020 |
|---|---|---|
| Net result of the consolidated companies | 8,096 | -1,402 |
| Other comprehensive income of the period | ||
| Other comprehensive income to be reclassified to profit or loss in subsequent periods | ||
| Other comprehensive income not te be reclassified to profit or loss in subsequent periods | ||
| Other comprehensive income of the period | - | - |
| Total comprehensive income of the period | 8,096 | -1,402 |
| Attributable to: | ||
| Minority interests | -298 | -129 |
| Equity holders of Roularta Media Group | 8,394 | -1,273 |
| ASSETS | in thousands of euros | 30/06/2021 | 31/12/2020 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-current assets | 208,952 | 187,928 | 21,024 | |
| Intangible assets | 79,398 | 53,257 | 26,141 | |
| Property, plant and equipment | 65,798 | 65,744 | 54 | |
| Investments accounted for using the equity method | 53,045 | 60,324 | -7,279 | |
| Available-for-sale investments, loans and guarantees | 3,417 | 3,313 | 104 | |
| Trade and other receivables | 76 | 78 | -2 | |
| Deferred tax assets | 7,217 | 5,212 | 2,005 | |
| Current assets | 153,621 | 149,644 | 3,977 | |
| Inventories | 5,943 | 4,838 | 1,105 | |
| Trade and other receivables | 48,389 | 49,881 | -1,492 | |
| Tax receivable | 905 | 919 | -14 | |
| Cash and cash equivalents | 88,928 | 90,559 | -1,631 | |
| Deferred charges and accrued income | 9,457 | 3,446 | 6,011 | |
| Total assets | 362,573 | 337,572 | 25,001 | |
| LIABILITIES | in thousands of euros | 30/06/2021 | 31/12/2020 | Trend |
| Equity | 235,476 | 223,864 | 11,612 | |
| Group's equity | 221,486 | 223,481 | -1,995 | |
| Issued capital | 80,000 | 80,000 | - | |
| Treasury shares | -33,623 | -34,924 | 1,301 | |
| Retained earnings | 171,001 | 174,335 | -3,334 | |
| Other reserves | 4,107 | 4,070 | 37 | |
| Minority interests | 13,991 | 383 | 13,608 | |
| Non-current liabilities | 22,630 | 16,207 | 6,423 | |
| Provisions | 6,005 | 7,622 | -1,617 | |
| Employee benefits | 5,032 | 4,767 | 265 | |
| Deferred tax liabilities | 6,810 | 205 | 6,605 | |
| Financial debts | 4,485 | 3,324 | 1,161 | |
| Other payables | 299 | 287 | 12 | |
| Current liabilities | 104,466 | 97,501 | 6,965 | |
| Financial debts | 1,503 | 1,315 | 188 | |
| Trade payables | 34,780 | 35,613 | -833 | |
| Advances received | 32,521 | 27,076 | 5,445 | |
| Employee benefits | 18,311 | 15,126 | 3,185 | |
| Taxes | 1,054 | 525 | 529 | |
| Other payables | 5,438 | 10,038 | -4,600 | |
| Accrued charges and deferred income | 10,860 | 7,808 | 3,052 | |
| Total liabilities | 362,573 | 337,572 | 25,001 |
REGULATED INFORMATION EMBARGO - 17 AUGUST 2021, 8.15 CET / ROULARTA MEDIA GROUP
| Cash flow relating to operating activities | in thousands of euros | 30/06/2021 | 30/06/2020 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net result of the consolidated companies | 8,096 | -1,402 | |
| Share in the results of associated companies and joint ventures | -1,882 | -544 | |
| Dividends received from associated companies and joint ventures | 5,250 | 1,250 | |
| Income tax expense / income | -1,563 | -233 | |
| Interest expenses | 148 | 132 | |
| Interest income (-) | -61 | -49 | |
| Gains (-) / losses (+) on disposal of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment |
-51 | -1,308 | |
| Non-cash items | 10,236 | 6,016 | |
| Depreciation of (in)tangible assets | 7,951 | 6,260 | |
| Impairment losses | 7,584 | - | |
| Share-based payment expense | 38 | 49 | |
| Increase (+) / decrease (-) in provision | 449 | 334 | |
| Other non-cash items | -5,786 | -627 | |
| Gross cash flow relating to operating activities | 20,174 | 3,863 | |
| Increase / decrease in trade receivables | 3,689 | 18,925 | |
| Increase / decrease in inventories | -600 | 837 | |
| Increase / decrease in trade payables | -5,245 | -16,290 | |
| Other increases / decreases in working capital (a) | -1,790 | -4,750 | |
| Increase / decrease in working capital | -3,947 | -1,279 | |
| Income taxes paid | -541 | 83 | |
| Interest paid | -132 | -131 | |
| Interest received | 40 | 50 | |
| NET CASH FLOW RELATING TO OPERATING ACTIVITIES (A) | 15,594 | 2,586 |
(a) Changes in current other receivables, deferred charges and accrued income, provisions, employee benefits, other payables, advances received and accrued charges and deferred income.
| Cash flow relating to investing activities | in thousands of euros | 30/06/2021 | 30/06/2020 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intangible assets - acquisitions | -15,866 | -1,973 | |
| Tangible assets - acquisitions | -1,374 | -4,422 | |
| Tangible assets - other movements | 70 | 1,638 | |
| Net cash flow relating to acquisition of subsidiaries and sector acquisitions |
-1,965 | -299 | |
| Net cash flow relating to disposal of subsidiaries and sector acquisitions | - | 200 | |
| Net cash flow relating to loans to investments accounted for using the equity method |
68 | -175 | |
| Available-for-sale investments, loans, guarantees - other movements | 15 | 17 | |
| NET CASH FLOW RELATING TO INVESTING ACTIVITIES (B) | -19,050 | -5,014 | |
| Cash flow relating to financing activities | |||
| Dividends paid | -11,729 | - | |
| Treasury shares | 76 | 49 | |
| Capital contribution non-controlling interests | 14,300 | - | |
| Redemption of current financial debts | - | -509 | |
| Repayment of leasing debt | -825 | -704 | |
| Decrease in non-current receivables | 3 | 3 | |
| NET CASH FLOW RELATING TO FINANCING ACTIVITIES (C) | 1,824 | -1,161 | |
| TOTAL DECREASE / INCREASE IN CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS (A+B+C) |
-1,631 | -3,589 | |
| Cash and cash equivalents, beginning balance | 90,559 | 101,438 | |
| Cash and cash equivalents, ending balance | 88,928 | 97,849 | |
| NET DECREASE / INCREASE IN CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS | -1,631 | -3,589 |
| in thousands of euros | Issued capital |
Treasury shares |
Retained Earnings |
Other reserves |
Equity - Group's share |
Minority Interests |
Total equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balance as of 01/01/2021 | 80,000 | -34,924 | 174,335 | 4,070 | 223,481 | 383 | 223,864 |
| Total comprehensive income of the period |
- | - | 8,394 | - | 8,394 | -298 | 8,096 |
| Total comprehensive income | - | - | 8,394 | - | 8,394 | -298 | 8,096 |
| Operations with own shares | - | 76 | - | - | 76 | - | 76 |
| Recognition of share-based payments | - | - | - | 38 | 38 | - | 38 |
| Dividends paid to minority interests | - | - | -11,729 | - | -11,729 | - | -11,729 |
| Capital contribution by minority interests |
- | - | - | - | - | 14,300 | 14,300 |
| Other decrease / increase | - | 1,225 | - | - | 1,225 | - | 1,225 |
| - | - | - | - | - | -394 | -394 | |
| Balance as of 30/06/2021 | 80,000 | -33,623 | 171,001 | 4,107 | 221,486 | 13,991 | 235,477 |
| in thousands of euros | Issued capital |
Treasury shares |
Retained Earnings |
Other reserves |
Equity - Group's share |
Minority Interests |
Total equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balance as of 01/01/2020 | 80,000 | -23,643 | 166,610 | 4,879 | 227,846 | 578 | 228,424 |
| Total comprehensive income of the period Other coprehensive income for the |
- | - | -1,273 | - | -1,273 | -129 | -1,402 |
| period, net of tax | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Total comprehensive income | - | - | -1,273 | - | -1,273 | -129 | -1,402 |
| Operations with own shares | - | 49 | - | - | 49 | - | 49 |
| Recognition of share-based payments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Dividends | - | - | - | 49 | 49 | - | 49 |
| Balance as of 30/06/2020 | 80,000 | -23,594 | 165,336 | 4,928 | 226,670 | 449 | 227,120 |
The summary unaudited interim financial statements have been drawn up in conformity with the International Accounting Standard IAS 34 Interim Financial Reporting as approved by the European Union. The interim financial statements were approved by the members of the Board of Directors on 16 August 2021.
When preparing the interim financial reporting, the same IFRS principles for inclusion and valuation were applied as for the consolidated annual financial statements of 31 December 2020.
The following valuation rule was added in the first half of 2021: the valuation of an obligation on a puttable minority interest. This is in response to a put option that Belfius (the minority shareholder) has on the 30% interest in the jointly founded entity Immovlan BV. A long-term financial obligation has been included for the fair value by means of a partial compensation of the minority interest. The fair value is the cash value of the estimated repayable amount and is dependent on an estimation by management of several assumptions (i.e. the expected market value, the estimated probability of the put option being exercised in the different years and the expected WACC). Then the obligation will be adjusted in the income statement for changes in value, including the effect of settling discounting and other changes in the estimated repayable amount as a consequence of changes in assumptions by management.
For the new IFRS and improved IAS standards that came into effect on 1 January 2021, we refer to Note 1 in the 2020 Annual Report. These had no impact on our condensed consolidated interim financial statements.
The following standards and interpretations have been published, but are not yet applicable to the financial year starting on 1 January 2021:
The Group has not engaged in early application of any standard, interpretation or amendment that has been published but is not yet in effect.
In preparing this half-yearly report, the same sources of estimation uncertainty as in the 2020 annual report were taken into account. However, insight into the impact of Covid-19 on the long-term results of the Group may develop further during the second half of the year, as a result of which different positions may be expressed at year-end than on 30 June 2021.
One of the main sources of estimation uncertainty is assessing the useful life of the brands. All brands are a cashgenerating unit (CGU) in themselves. The reason for this is that each brand constitutes an identity of its own, with its own strategic positioning, its own target group, its own values, its own marketing and sales approach, which is managed individually to achieve the highest value for each brand. On 30 June 2021, the Group does not expect any deviation from the expected useful life that was determined at the end of the previous reporting period.
On the other hand, certain brands had limited headroom at the end of the previous reporting period, after conducting an impairment test (see note 13 in the 2020 annual report). This limited headroom, combined with persistent lower revenues for certain brands, was an indication to the group that another impairment test should be performed on 30 June 2021 for the material brands (net book value greater than € 1 million).
In this test, the realisable value of each of the cash-generating units was determined on the basis of a calculation of its value in use. This is based on cashflow predictions for the coming five years.
The assumptions in the test for the future years were identical to those of the impairment test of 31 December 2020, in particular: fixed costs increase by 1% per year, revenue increases on average by 1% per year for advertising and 2% every two years for subscriptions. These increases are all due to inflation. The residual value was determined on the basis of a perpetuity formula, based on a long-term growth rate of 0% and a WACC of 7%. This discount factor is based on a WACC model in which the risk premium and gearing ratio are based on the profile of Roularta Media Group as a whole and on a group of comparable companies. Since the local markets where Roularta Media Group is present exhibit a similar growth and risk profile, RMG management has judged that the same assumptions (growth rate and WACC) can be applied to all brands. In this, the long-term growth rate reflects expectations within the media world.
Management concludes from this that the impact of Covid-19 will last longer than expected in the December 2020 impairment test and/or that the expected resumptions of business will be delayed. For this reason, the future cash flows have been adjusted negatively. As a conclusion to the impairment test, three brands - Sterck, Flair and Le Vif have been impaired with a total net book value of € 7.6 million.
The table below shows the net book value of the brands on 30 June 2021 and 31 December 2020, and the remaining useful life as of 30 June 2021:
| Cash-generating unit (in thousands of euros) | Intangible asset - 2021 |
Intangible asset- 2020 |
Total remaining useful life (in years) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Landleven | 6,918 | 7,131 | 17 |
| STERCK | - | 3,752 | - |
| Top Uitgaves | 2,431 | 2,605 | 7 |
| Fiscaal-juridisch | 2,379 | 2,549 | 7 |
| Le Vif/L'express | - | 1,349 | - |
| Libelle/Femmes d'Aujourd'hui | 22,525 | 23,188 | 17 |
| Flair | - | 2,878 | - |
| Feeling/Gael | 817 | 874 | 7 |
| La Maison Victor | 220 | 275 | 2 |
| Shedeals | 120 | 150 | 2 |
| Zappy Ouders | 54 | 67 | 2 |
| Communiekrant | 177 | 222 | 2 |
| Plus magazine BE | 1,249 | 1,282 | 18.7 |
| Plus magazine NL | 19,438 | - | 19.7 |
| Télépro | 1,843 | - | 9.7 |
| Immovlan | 952 | - | 9.5 |
| Total Brand value | 59,123 | 46,321 | |
| Total customer portfolio (Immovlan) | 10,392 | - | 14.5 |
| Total software | 9,205 | 6,782 | |
| Total other | 678 | 153 | |
| Total intangible fixed assets | 79,398 | 53,257 |
Also added to the above table is the full reconciliation of the intangible fixed assets on the balance sheet. Besides the brands, there is also € 10.4 million on 'customer portfolio' (net book value) that was created at the formation of Immovlan BV in the beginning of 2021 (we refer to 4. Investments and 6.4 Changes in the consolidated group). There is also € 9.2 million in software and € 0.7 million in other intangible fixed assets.
For De Tijd /L'Echo, the brand of joint venture Mediafin, there were no indicators for an impairment on 30 June 2021, with the result that no impairment test was conducted. An impairment was booked for the Comfi brand, one of the brands run by Mediafin, since this was terminated as a division from June 2021 onwards, given the negative margins realised. Half of the net book value, i.e. € 0.4 million, was booked in cost through share of result of joint ventures at 30 June 2021.
The following intangible fixed assets are on Mediafin's balance sheet (at 100%) on 30 June 2021 and 31 December 2020 with the following net book values and remaining useful life:
| in thousands of euros (at 100%) | Intangible asset - 2021 |
Intangible asset- 2020 |
Total remaining useful life (in years) |
|---|---|---|---|
| De Tijd/L'Echo | 75,656 | 76,685 | 36.5 |
| Comfi | - | 771 | - |
| BePublic - BeReal | 2,396 | 2,576 | 6.5 |
| Klantenrelaties | 24,632 | 25,371 | 16.5 |
| Goodwill | 24,675 | 24,675 | Unlimited |
| Total | 127,359 | 130,078 |
There is currently no concentration of significant credit risks, and the necessary provisions have been made in accordance with the valuation rules set out in the 2020 annual report on page 57. On the balance sheet date, it was examined whether certain customers were more affected by Covid-19 than others, as a result of which there would be a possible risk of credit losses. Due to the prepayments, subscribers do not pose a risk. Also for our print, free press and agency customers, we see no changed pattern so far that would require our valuation rules to be modified. The provision for credit losses still presents a true and fair picture.
The group structure on 30 June 2021 is as follows:
| Name of the company | Location | Effective interest percentage |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Fully consolidated companies | |||
| ROULARTA MEDIA GROUP NV | Roeselare, Belgium | 100.00% | |
| BELGIAN BUSINESS TELEVISION NV | Brussels, Belgium | 100.00% | |
| HET MEDIABEDRIJF BV | Baarn, The Netherlands | 100.00% | |
| ROULARTA SERVICES FRANCE SARL | Lille, France | 100.00% | |
| IMMOVLAN BV | Brussels, Belgium | 35.00% | |
| ROULARTA MEDIA DEUTSCHLAND | Augsburg, Germany | 100.00% | |
| BAYARD MEDIA VERWALTUNGS GMBH | Augsburg, Germany | 100.00% | |
| BELGOMEDIA SA | Verviers, Belgium | 100.00% | |
| ETADORO BV | Baarn, The Netherlands | 100.00% | |
| MEDIAPLUS BV | Baarn, The Netherlands | 100.00% | |
| SENIOR PUBLICATIONS NEDERLAND BV | Baarn, The Netherlands | 100.00% | |
| SENIOR PUBLICATIONS VERWALTUNGS GMBH |
Cologne, Germany | 100.00% | |
| PRESS PARTNERS BV | Baarn, The Netherlands | 100.00% | |
| STUDIO APERI NEGOTIUM NV | Roeselare, Belgium | 75.00% | |
| STORESQUARE NV (in liquidation) | Roeselare, Belgium | 65.00% | |
| 2. Consolidated using the equity method |
| CTR MEDIA SA | Brussels, Belgium | 50.00% | joint venture |
|---|---|---|---|
| MEDIAFIN NV | Brussels, Belgium | 50.00% | joint venture |
| REPROPRESS CV | Brussels, Belgium | 30.22% | associated company |
| YELLOWBRICK NV | Schaarbeek, Belgium | 35.00% | associated company |
| 50+ BEURS & FESTIVAL BV | Arnhem, The Netherlands | 50.00% | joint venture |
On 6 January 2021, a new entity, Immovlan BV, was founded by Roularta Media Group (35%), Rossel Group (35%) and Belfius (30%). The entity includes the activities of Immovlan and Vacancesweb, which were part of CTR Media SA in 2020 (50% RMG/50% Rossel). The transaction was approved during November 2020 by the competition authority. This investment is part of a strategic cooperation agreement between Belfius and Immovlan, whereby they combine their digital expertise and further diversify their service offerings in residential real estate. Together, the three Belgian shareholders are joining forces to make Immovlan the digital reference real estate platform on the Belgian market, and to guide customers through all the phases of their real estate projects in a uniquely integrated manner.
Roularta Media Group took all the facts and circumstances into account in evaluating whether it exercises control over the investment, and came to the conclusion that this is the case because the group has control of Rossel's 35% interest according to the shareholders' agreement between Roularta Media Group and Rossel. This is why the group is fully consolidating this entity, with the result that the Immovlan brand – which was previously run by the joint venture entity CTR Media SA – plays a more significant role in the group's consolidated income statement.
REGULATED INFORMATION EMBARGO - 17 AUGUST 2021, 8.15 CET / ROULARTA MEDIA GROUP
On 25 March 2021, Roularta Media Group (RMG) reached an agreement with Bayard Presse, as a result of which RMG will henceforth be the sole owner of the Belgian limited company Belgomedia SA and the Dutch limited company Senior Publications Nederland BV. As a result of this transaction, RMG also acquired 100% of the shares in Press Partners BV. Thus Roularta now owns 100% of the shares and the consolidation method has changed. As of 1 April 2021, the entity will be fully consolidated, whereas it was previously included using the equity accounting method.
As a result, the balance sheets of Belgomedia SA and Senior Publications Nederland BV (and their subsidiaries) are fully included in the consolidated balance sheet on 30 June 2021. On 30 June 2021, the income statement of the Group comprises, firstly, 50% of the result of Belgomedia SA and Senior Publications Nederland BV (and their subsidiaries) up to and including March 2021 (i.e. € -0.1 million) as a 'share in the result of associates and joint ventures', and, secondly, 100% of the result as of 1 April 2021 included in the consolidated annual financial statements (i.e. € 7.9 million in external revenue and € 0.8 million in net result). If the Group had already acquired control on 1 January 2021, the Group's revenue would have been € 8.1 million more, but the net result would have been € 0.1 million less.
The step acquisition was accounted for using the acquisition method in accordance with IFRS 3 Business Combinations (revised version) and will be finalised within the one-year window. The carrying amount on the acquisition date of Roularta's previously held equity interest in the two entities was revalued at fair value on the acquisition date. The resulting profit (€ 5.8 million) was included in the income statement under other operating income. There were no costs related to the acquisition.
Two brands have been provisionally designated as intangible: Télépro and Plus Magazine NL. The former was booked as a brand with relatively significant brand and value awareness, with a revenue/EBITDA that is stable or slightly declining. Consequently, straight-line depreciation has been applied over the estimated useful life of 10 years. The latter was booked as a brand with a reputation that can still grow in terms of revenue and EBITDA. Consequently, straight-line depreciation has been applied over the estimated useful life of 20 years.
Télépro is the second best-selling weekly magazine in French-speaking Belgium. The clear and comprehensible TV listings magazine guides the reader through more than 80 TV channels and streaming platforms. Télépro has a print run of 100,286 copies, of which 75% are subscriptions, and reaches 445,750 readers with its print version and digital channels (including télépro.be) (source: CIM).
Plus Magazine in the Netherlands is a monthly magazine that appeals to a wide and growing audience of people over fifty. The inspiring magazine is based on five important pillars: health, law and money, society, leisure and lifestyle. Plus Magazine is the biggest monthly magazine in the Netherlands, with a print run of 217,123 copies sold, of which 89% are subscriptions. The printed version and digital channels (including plusonline.nl) reach 1,304,000 readers (source: NOM). In recent years, Plus Magazine has also developed several derivative products: +Gezond, the biggest health magazine in the Netherlands, Plus Puzzels, special editions, cruises and travel, online courses (Etadoro.nl), insurance, etc. These media brands have joined Landleven, the magazine for fans of the countryside in the Netherlands, which has been 100% owned by RMG since 2017. Gezondheidsnet.nl is the biggest health website in the Netherlands, with 2.5 million unique visitors per month and 190,000 subscribers to the newsletter.
There are also a few other brands that have not been identified on the group's balance sheet. Plus Magazine in Germany is the monthly magazine aimed at the over-fifties, whereas the monthly magazine Frau Im Leben is aimed at women over forty. Plus Magazine and Frau Im Leben have print runs of 49,599 and 62,700 copies respectively, of which 79% are subscriptions. They reach 1.5 million readers on their print and digital channels. G-Geschichte in Germany is the monthly magazine for history lovers. It has a print run of 25,000, of which 78% are subscriptions. G-Geschichte also exists in Dutch (as G-Geschiedenis) and is sold in the Netherlands and Belgium.
The fair values of the identified assets and liabilities on the acquisition date were as follows:
| in thousands of euros | Carrying value at acquisition date |
Fair value adjustments |
Fair value at acquisition date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intangible assets | 952 | 21,520 | 22,472 |
| Property, plant and equipment | 1,704 | - | 1,704 |
| Available-for-sale investments, loans and guarantees | 274 | - | 274 |
| Deferred tax assets | 3,099 | - | 3,099 |
| Total non-current assets | 6,028 | 21,520 | 27,548 |
| Trade receivables | 5,241 | - | 5,241 |
| Other receivables | 2,326 | - | 2,326 |
| Total current assets | 7,567 | - | 7,567 |
| Deferred tax liabilities | 4,758 | 5,394 | 10,152 |
| Other non-current liabilities | 1,710 | - | 1,710 |
| Total non-current liabilities | 6,468 | 5,394 | 11,862 |
| Trade payables | 4,412 | - | 4,412 |
| Advances received | 6,849 | - | 6,849 |
| Other current liabilities | 1,303 | - | 1,303 |
| Total current liabilities | 12,564 | - | 12,564 |
| Cash | 8,635 | - | 8,635 |
| Total net assets acquired | 3,198 | 16,126 | 19,324 |
| in thousands of euros | |
|---|---|
| Consideration paid | 11,825 |
| Fair value historical investment | 7,499 |
| Total | 19,324 |
| Total net assets acquired | 3,198 |
| Allocated consideration | 16,126 |
| Acquired intangible assets | 21,520 |
| Deferred tax liabilities on intangible assets | -5,394 |
A net outgoing cash flow of € 2.0 million was realised on the transaction, including firstly the price paid of € 10.6 million, and secondly the cash present in the former joint ventures that has now been fully consolidated in the group (€ 8.6 million). A Roularta share package worth € 1.2 million was also traded in payment for the acquisition.
| in thousands of euros | |
|---|---|
| Consideration paid | 10,600 |
| Cash acquired on acquisition | 8,635 |
| Net cash-out on acquisition | 1,965 |
German entities Bayard Media and Senior Publications Germany
On 11 June 2021, the German branch of Roularta Media Group ("Roularta Media Deutschland") took over all the activities of Bayard Media GmbH & CO KG by means of an asset purchase agreement. This includes Plus Magazine Deutschland, Frau Im Leben and G-Geschichte, among other publications. All the staff were also taken over. After this operation, two companies in Germany, i.e. Bayard Media GmbH & CO KG and Senior Publications Deutschland GmbH & CO KG, were dissolved. Bayard Media Verwaltungs GmbH and Senior Publications Verwaltungs GmbH will also be dissolved in the coming year.
Holding Echos NV
At the end of 2020, Holding Echos NV, for 50% owned by Mediafin NV, sold its minority stake (12.5%) in Audiopresse NV to CLT-UFA, a daughter of the RTL-group. Holding Echos is in liquidation at 30 June 2021.
REGULATED INFORMATION EMBARGO - 17 AUGUST 2021, 8.15 CET / ROULARTA MEDIA GROUP
Last year at the end of February 2020, RMG acquired 50% of the shares in Senior Publications NV (Plus Magazine in Belgium) from the Bayard Group. For more information about the impact on the results and processing of the step acquisition, we refer to the half-yearly report of 30 June 2020 and the 2020 annual report.
In accordance with IFRS 8 Operating segments, the management approach for financial reporting of segmented information is applied. According to this standard, the segmented information to be reported must be consistent with the internal reports used by the main operational decision-making officers, on the basis of which the internal performance of Roularta's operating segments is assessed and resources are allocated to the different segments. As of 2018, Roularta Media Group NV, its subsidiaries and joint ventures ('RMG' or 'the Group') have reported the annual and half-yearly results according to two segments.
The 'Media Brands' segment refers to all brands that are operated by RMG and its shareholdings. This includes all sales of advertising, subscriptions, newsstand sales and line extensions of the brands.
The 'Printing Services' segment represents the pre-press and printing activities for in-house brands and external customers. Pre-press activities refer to the work of compiling the magazines before they roll off the printing presses or are published on the website.
As indicated earlier, only consolidated figures are provided, and these segments are reported to gross margin level. There is a strong interrelation between these segments, and supporting services are shared intensively. A change in the allocation of these costs means a significant fluctuation in EBITDA, such that reporting may not be consistent.
| 30/06/21 | Media | Inter | Consolidated | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| in thousands of euros | Brands | Printing | Total | segment elimination |
total |
| Sales of the segment | 126,904 | 31,741 | 158,645 | -16,921 | 141,724 |
| Sales to external customers | 126,904 | 14,820 | 141,724 | - | 141,724 |
| Sales from transactions with other segments | - | 16,921 | 16,921 | -16,921 | - |
| Gross margin (*) | 100,874 | 18,858 | 119,732 | - | 119,732 |
| Not allocated result (**) | -111,636 | ||||
| Net result | 8,096 | ||||
| 30/06/20 | Media | Printing | Total | Inter segment |
Consolidated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| in thousands of euros | Brands | elimination | total | ||
| Sales of the segment | 104,750 | 30,501 | 135,251 | -14,616 | 120,635 |
| Sales to external customers | 104,710 | 15,925 | 120,635 | - | 120,635 |
| Sales from transactions with other segments | 40 | 14,576 | 14,616 | -14,616 | - |
| Gross margin (*) | 82,803 | 16,480 | 99,283 | -560 | 98,723 |
| Not allocated result (**) | -100,125 | ||||
| Net result | -1,402 |
(*) Gross margin is revenue plus the fixed assets produced, less merchandise, raw materials and consumables. (**) Services and other goods, personnel charges, other operating income/expenses, share in the result of associated companies and joint ventures, depreciations, impairments losses and provisions, financial income and expenses, income taxes.
There are no material changes regarding the provisions for pending disputes as stated in Note 23 of the 2020 annual report.
Please refer to 4. Investments in this half-yearly report.
Inventories had risen by € 1.1 million on 30 June 2021, compared to 31 December 2020, due to the anticipation of shortages in the market and an expected increase in the price of paper in the second half of the year.
Trade receivables had fallen by € 1.3 million on 30 June 2021, compared to 31 December 2020, due to a decreased DSO (56 days compared to 57 days at end of year).
Trade payables had fallen by € 0.8 million on 30 June 2021, compared to 31 December 2020.
No use was made of the authorisation in the articles of association to buy back company shares, renewed by the general meeting of 16 May 2017. During the first half of 2021, 6,495 treasury shares were granted to option holders when exercising their options.
Furthermore, treasury shares worth € 1.2 million were used for the purchase of the remaining equity interest in the former joint ventures with the Bayard group (see group structure). There are 1,411,809 treasury shares at the end of June 2021.
No new bank loans were concluded in the first half of 2021, and Roularta remains free of bank debt. New lease liabilities of € 0.4 million were recognised during the first 6 months of 2021, and due to the acquisition of the joint ventures, € 1.5 million in leasing debts became visible on the group's balance sheet.
Furthermore, a financial debt linked to puttable minority interests was included at a value of € 0.4 million. RMG and Rossel granted the minority shareholder Belfius a put option under strict conditions, whereby Belfius has the right to sell its shares at a future date to the other two shareholders at a price to be determined at the time of exercising that right, based on an agreed formula that contains a fixed amount for the first two years (as of 6 January 2021) and a concession price on a market value to be determined in subsequent years. The put option is not limited in duration. Management currently estimates the likelihood of Belfius exercising its option to be low, given the excellent relationship and future collective value creation.
The conditions do not grant the group any current ownership interest in the shares covered by the put option. The fair value of the put option is the cash value of the estimated repayable amount. The expected repayable amount has been estimated by management on the basis of several assumptions including the expected market value, the estimated probability of the put option being exercised in the different years and the expected WACC.
A long-term financial obligation was included for this fair value by means of a partial compensation of the minority interest that was recorded during foundation. Then the obligation will be adjusted in the income statement for changes in value, including the effect of settling discounting and other changes in the estimated repayable amount as a consequence of changes in assumptions by management. The liabilities linked to puttable minority interests are found at IFRS fair value hierarchy level 3, i.e. one or more significant inputs are not based on observable market figures.
Last but not least, there is still a bank guarantee open of € 0.5 million for the new Lithoman printing press until the end of September 2021.
The fair value approximates the carrying amount for the financial instruments.
The consolidated revenue increased by 17.5% compared to the first half of 2020. The corrected revenue (excluding changes to the consolidation scope) increased by 9.5%. For a discussion of this development, we refer to the press release concerning the half-yearly results and the interim report by the Board of Directors that is included earlier in this half-yearly report.
Covid-19 has not had any impact on the recognition of revenue. The valuation rules described in the 2020 annual report still apply.
In comparison to the first half of 2020, these costs increased by € 1.4 million due to increased revenue. In terms of percentage, costs compared to revenue decreased due to a drop in paper prices and an increased gross margin from the joint ventures that were fully acquired at the end of March 2021.
Services and other goods amount to € 56.8 million (2020: € 51.7 million). The increase is mainly due to the services and other goods in the acquired joint ventures and the new entity Immovlan.
Personnel costs increased by € 3.1 million compared to the first half of 2020. The increase is largely due to the staff taken over as a result of the acquisition of the joint ventures and the staff of the newly founded entity Immovlan. Furthermore, Roularta made less use of the temporary unemployment (furlough) system related to Covid-19 in the first half of 2021.
In the first six months of 2021, revenue of € 7.8 million was reported (2020: revenue of € 3.9 million). This revenue mainly comes from the capital gain of € 5.8 million realised on the historic share that the group had in the joint ventures that were recently fully acquired after application of IFRS 3 Business Combinations – step acquisition. Last year included the capital gain on the sale of two Roularta buildings (€ 1.3 million) and the capital gain on the dilution of the ownership percentage in the entity Proxistore (€ 0.7 million).
Mediafin is performing considerably better than in the first half of last year, when it was also affected by the pandemic. For more information about this, we refer to 1. Interim report by the Board of Directors, in this half-yearly report.
For the joint ventures that were fully acquired at the end of March 2021, their results for the first quarter of 2021 are included in the share in the result of associated companies and joint ventures. From the second quarter onwards, their results are fully consolidated.
| in thousands of euros | 30/06/2021 | 30/06/2020 |
|---|---|---|
| Bayard Group | 166 | 560 |
| Mediafin | 1,649 | 247 |
| Other | 67 | -263 |
| 1,882 | 544 |
Depreciation amounted to € 8.0 million, which is € 1.7 million higher than the previous year (€ 6.3 million). Of this, € 1.3 million can be attributed to new depreciations on intangible fixed assets, mainly due to the brands and customer portfolios created by the full acquisition of the former joint ventures and the foundation of Immovlan BV (see 6.4 "Changes in the consolidated group"). The increase in depreciations of tangible fixed assets (+ € 0.4 million) is mainly due to the depreciation of the new Lithoman printing press that became operational in November 2020 and is written off over 23 years.
In the first half of 2021, an impairment loss was booked on a few of the group's brands, at a value of € 7.6 million. Please refer to 6.3.1 of this half-yearly report, where the impairment is explained. No impairments were booked in 2020.
These are in line with last year since there are no outstanding financial debts. They mainly include the negative interest on cash and the interest expenses due to the application of IFRS 16.
A deferred tax revenue worth € 2.5 million and current tax costs of € 0.9 million were recorded on 30 June 2021. The former is mainly a temporary difference resulting from the foundation of the Immovlan BV entity, whereby RMG sold its customer portfolio for a capital gain of € 8.3 million. The current tax costs are estimated taxes. Last year, an active tax deferral was accrued worth € 0.3 million, due to a higher recovery of transferred tax losses by the acquired brand 'Plus Magazine'.
The affiliated parties of Roularta Media Group NV consist of the subsidiaries, joint ventures, associates, other affiliated parties, management and executives. The composition of the affiliated parties, the nature of the transactions and the outstanding balances have not changed significantly compared to the annual financial statements on 31 December 2020, with the exception of the changes in the group explained in 6.4.
No significant events occurred that have a major influence on the results and financial position of the company.
The half-yearly results normally show limited seasonal fluctuations. Where revenue is typically lower in January and February in the first half of the year, the same occurs in July and August in the second half of the year.
For the main risks and uncertainties, we refer you to the 2020 annual report (Annual Report of the Board of Directors), pages 61 to 63, paragraphs 1.24 and 1.25. This half-yearly report does not contain any fundamental changes to the risks or uncertainties.
The undersigned declare that, to the best of their knowledge,
– the condensed financial overviews, which have been drawn up in accordance with the applicable standards for annual financial statements, give a true and fair view of the net assets, the financial situation and the results of Roularta Media Group and of the companies included in the consolidation;
– the interim financial report presents a true and fair view of the key events and principal transactions with affiliated parties during the first six months of the current financial year and of their impact on the condensed financial overviews, as well as a description of the principal risks and uncertainties during the remaining months of the financial year.
Rik de Nolf, Chairman of the Board of Directors
Xavier Bouckaert, CEO
Jeroen Mouton, CFO
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