USU Software AG — Earnings Release 2015

May 21, 2015

News Details

Corporate | 21 May 2015 09:00

USU Software AG reports figures for Q1 2015 – Sales increase of 6%, adjusted EBIT rises strongly by 128%

DGAP-News: USU Software AG / Key word(s): Quarter Results/Development
of Sales

2015-05-21 / 09:00

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* Organic sales increase of 6% in line with planning
* International sales account for approximately 30% of total sales
* Product business expands by 9% - service business still muted
* Strong earnings growth - adjusted EBIT up 128%
* Group liquidity rises 34% as against December 31, 2014
* Orders on hand up 32%
* Sales and earnings planning reiterated

Möglingen, May 21, 2015 - USU Software AG (ISIN DE000A0BVU28) increased its
IFRS Group-wide sales by 5.7% year-on-year to EUR 14,069 thousand (Q1 2014:
EUR 13,314 thousand) in the first quarter of 2015. The rise in sales
reported for USU Software AG and its subsidiaries (hereinafter referred to
as "USU" or the "USU Group") results from consistently expansive
international business, which grew by 51.8% as against the previous year to
EUR 4,196 thousand in the reporting quarter (Q1 2014: EUR 2,764 thousand).
Accordingly, the share of consolidated sales accounted for by international
sales at USU climbed from 20.8% in the first quarter of 2014 to currently
29.8%.

Maintenance business grew strongly in the first quarter of 2015 by 11.8% to
EUR 3,466 thousand (Q1 2014: EUR 3,099 thousand). USU mainly benefited here
from the increase in income from software maintenance agreements and new
software-as-a-service (SaaS) projects. Software license business from
on-premises projects was up slightly by 1.2% at EUR 1,915 thousand (Q1
2014: EUR 1,892 thousand). USU also expanded its consulting business to EUR
8,492 thousand (Q1 2014: EUR 8,143 thousand), an increase of 4.3% as
against Q1 2014.

Broken down by segment, USU generated total sales of EUR 10,666 thousand in
its Product Business division in the first three months of fiscal 2015
(Q1 2014: EUR 9,766 thousand). This represents year-on-year growth of 9.2%.
By contrast, consulting sales in the Service Business segment were down
4.2% year-on-year at EUR 3,349 thousand (Q1 2014: EUR 3,496 thousand) owing
to reduced business with freelancers. Accordingly, USU increased the share
of its consolidated sales attributable to the product segment to 75.8% (Q1
2014: 73.4%). Sales not assigned to the segments amounted to EUR 54
thousand in total in the months January to March 2015 (Q1 2014: EUR 52
thousand).

As a result of the substantial expansion in international business and the
associated sales growth, combined with an only minor increase in costs, the
USU Group's profitability improved significantly in the opening quarter of
2015. Adjusted for the extraordinary effects of acquisitions, USU's
adjusted EBIT climbed by 127.7% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2015
to EUR 1,077 thousand (Q1 2014: EUR 473 thousand). Unadjusted, USU
generated EBIT of EUR 743 thousand (Q1 2014: EUR 97 thousand), a
year-on-year increase of 674%. At the same time, USU doubled its EBITDA as
against Q1 2014 to EUR 1,288 thousand (Q1 2014: EUR 642 thousand). The
consolidated net profit amounted to EUR 929 thousand in the first quarter
of 2015 after a loss of EUR 82 thousand in the same period of the previous
year. USU's earnings per share improved accordingly from EUR -0.01 in the
previous year to EUR 0.09 in the first quarter of 2015.

The consolidated earnings generated led to a rise in the Group's equity to
EUR 56,466 thousand as of March 31, 2015 (December 31, 2014: EUR 55,608
thousand). Liabilities increased to EUR 33,138 thousand as of the end of
the reporting period (December 31, 2014: EUR 29,566 thousand), mainly as a
result of higher deferred income for maintenance agreements invoiced at the
start of the year for which the service will be rendered and the sales
recognized later in the year. With total assets of EUR 89,604 thousand
(December 31, 2014: EUR 85,174 thousand), the equity ratio was 63.0% as of
March 31, 2015 (December 31, 2014: 65.3%). At the same time, USU
significantly increased its Group liquidity in the form of cash and cash
equivalents to EUR 25,421 thousand (December 31, 2014: EUR 18,920
thousand), corresponding to a rise of 34.4%.

After the positive start to the year, the Management Board of USU Software
AG expects the growth trend of the previous years to continue successfully
in 2015 as a whole. International business particularly is set to increase
significantly. This will be aided by the ongoing penetration of the US
market and the expansion of activities in Central Europe. At the same time,
business in Germany should grow again as well. A positive indication for
the advised growth is the Group-wide orders on hand at USU, which increased
by 32.0% as against the previous year to EUR 33,049 thousand as of March
31, 2015 (March 31, 2014: EUR 25,029 thousand). Overall, the Management
Board is reiterating its planning of an increase in consolidated sales to
between EUR 64 and EUR 68 million in fiscal 2015, together with a strong
rise in adjusted EBIT to between EUR 8 and EUR 9.5 million. On the basis of
this forecast, the Management Board is planning to let the shareholders of
USU Software AG participate in the company's business success in 2015 as
well, as it has done in previous years, thereby upholding the
shareholder-friendly dividend policy in the spirit of sustainable
continuity. For fiscal 2014 the Management Board and the Supervisory Board
have proposed a profit distribution of EUR 0.30 per share to the Annual
General Meeting of USU Software AG, an increase in the dividend of 20% as
against the previous year.

With international business flourishing, potential on the core German
market remaining high and the growth-oriented acquisition policy of the USU
Group, the Management Board is also still assuming the successful
implementation of its medium-term planning of sales of more than EUR 100
million with an adjusted EBIT margin in excess of 15% by 2017.

USU Software AG
The USU Group is the largest provider in Europe for IT and knowledge
management software. Market leaders from all sectors of the international
economy use USU applications to create transparency, enhance agility, save
costs and reduce their risks. In addition to USU AG, founded in 1977, USU
Software AG - which is listed in the Prime Standard of the German Stock
Exchange and the GEX (ISIN DE000A0BVU28) - also includes the subsidiaries
Aspera GmbH, LeuTek GmbH, OMEGA Software GmbH and B.I.G. Social Media GmbH.

Contact:
USU Software AG
Corporate Communications
Dr. Thomas Gerick
Tel.: +49 (0) 71 41 - 48 67 440
Fax: +49 (0) 71 41 - 48 67 909
E-Mail: t.gerick@usu-software.de

USU Software AG
Investor Relations
Falk Sorge
Spitalhof
D-71696 Möglingen
Tel.: +49 (0) 71 41 - 48 67 351
Fax: +49 (0) 71 41 - 48 67 108
E-Mail: f.sorge@usu-software.de

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Language: English
Company: USU Software AG
Spitalhof
71696 Möglingen
Germany
Phone: +49 (0)7141 4867-0
Fax: +49 (0)7141 4867-200
E-mail: info@usu-software.de
Internet: www.usu-software.de
ISIN: DE000A0BVU28
WKN: A0BVU2
Listed: Regulated Market in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Regulated
Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Munich,
Stuttgart

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360329 2015-05-21