Dividend increases to 70 cents/share
Management publishes new revenue and earnings targets

Pliezhausen, March 3, 2020. DATAGROUP SE (WKN A0JC8S) today has held its ordinary Annual General Meeting and resolved to increase the dividend from 60 to 70 cents per share. For the fifth consecutive time, shareholders will benefit from the company’s good business performance. The management provided positive guidance for the current fiscal year as well: Revenue is expected to grow to over EUR 375m, EBITDA to over EUR 55m.

In his speech to 174 shareholders at this year’s ordinary Annual General Meeting of DATAGROUP SE, CEO Max H.-H. Schaber took stock of the performance in FY 2018/2019 and provided guidance for the current fiscal year.

“The fiscal year 2018/2019 has been another strong year for DATAGROUP and we also want our shareholders to participate in the success”, says Max H.-H. Schaber. The Annual General Meeting, at which 65.7% of the share capital were represented, approved the increase of the dividend to 70 cents per no-par share, corresponding to EUR 5,832,021.30 and 40% of the Group’s net income. Prior to the first-time application of IFRS 15/16, revenue of the IT service provider was up 18.8 % to EUR 323.3m, EBITDA grew by 15.4% to EUR 39.8m and EBIT to EUR 23.5m. Earnings per share (EPS) increased to EUR 1.76.

“Our success is driven by our well-proven high-quality IT services which, as engine room of digitization, support our customers on their way to the future. This helps us to regularly win major contracts and to foster enthusiasm among our existing customers in the long term. In conjunction with our acquisition strategy, this is the foundation of our successful, sustainable growth, which we will continue this year as well,” explains Max H.-H. Schaber.

Ambitious Forecast for the Full Year

For the current fiscal year (01.10.2019-30.09.2020) the management projects an increase in revenue to over EUR 375m and in EBITDA to over EUR 55m. The acquisition of Diebold Nixdorf Portavis (Portavis), which generated revenue of some EUR 60m last fiscal year, will be consolidated from March 2020 for the first time and will have a positive impact on the development of the group as a whole.

Last fiscal year, the IT service provider acquired the present DATAGROUP Frankfurt (formerly UBL Informationssysteme GmbH). The profitable company has been consolidated since April 2019. Additionally, the assets of the insolvent IT-Informatik GmbH were acquired and bundled into the new DATAGROUP Ulm. These assets also included the very profitable Berlin-based Mercoline GmbH, which has positively contributed to the Group’s earnings since August 2019.

“The acquisition of IT-Informatik indeed proved to be a lucky strike”, explains Peter Schneck, new board member of DATAGROUP since October 2019 and responsible for M&A. “Within just a couple of months we succeeded in stabilizing the company as DATAGROUP Ulm and return it to profitability by undertaking appropriate restructuring measures. We are now intensively working on further improving the company’s earnings power. We believe there is great potential for the future.”

The conditions for a continuation of the successful acquisition strategy are in place. The promissory note loan issued in April with a volume of EUR 69m secured the company’s planning security and financial stability at very favorable conditions.

The company also grows organically. In FY 2018/2019, it has won 29 new customers and was able to upsell products to 16 existing customers on the basis of the CORBOX core product. Twelve new customers and nine upselling customers have already been added in the current fiscal year.

“IT’s that simple – Operating the IT for our customers, simple and at eye-level, is the core of the DATAGROUP model, and this is rewarded by our customers with a high satisfaction score and long-standing contracts. Our sustainable quality is also proven by the numerous awards we received in the last year”, explains Dirk Peters, who is responsible for Sales as a board member. Amongst others, DATAGROUP was ranked one of the best IT service providers in 2020 by business magazine brand eins, and business magazine Wirtschaftswoche saw the company among the digital pioneers of the Mittelstand. But DATAGROUP also scores high as an employer. Magazine stern, in cooperation with Statista, named the IT service provider as one of the Top 35 IT employers in Germany.

“Particularly in times when there is a shortage of specialists, it is important for a company’s success to be perceived as a good employer”, says Andreas Baresel, board member and responsible for Supply Units and Production. “We invest a lot to promote young talent and to be more for our employees than just a workplace. We see ourselves as job-related life partners.”

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