Record financial result achieved due to Manila compensation payment – Airports in Fraport’s international portfolio report mixed results
Fraport AG guarda indietro ad un anno commerciale 2016 di successo (terminato il 31 dicembre), che è stato caratterizzato da un risultato finanziario record ottenuto nonostante le difficili condizioni quadro per l’industria aeronautica e un traffico leggermente in calo presso la base del Gruppo all’aeroporto di Francoforte.
Group revenue declined by 0.5 percent year-on-year to €2.59 billion. Adjusting for changes in the scope of consolidation due to the sale of shares in Fraport Cargo Services (FCS) and the disposal of the Air-Transport IT Services subsidiary, Group revenue would have risen by €46.2 million or 1.8 percent. This resulting increase in revenue (on an adjusted basis) was stimulated in particular by the ongoing growth at the Group’s airports in Lima (Peru) and Varna and Burgas (Bulgaria), as well as at the Fraport USA subsidiary, and by revenue gained from property sales.
The Group’s operating profit or EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) advanced by 24.2 percent, reaching a new record high of €1.05 billion. This strong growth was supported by the compensation payment received for the Manila terminal project, which boosted EBITDA by €198.8 million. Fraport’s successful sale of a 10.5 percent share in Thalita Trading Ltd., the owner of the operating company of Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg (Russia), contributed another €40.1 million to EBITDA. Adjusting for these effects and the creation of provisions for a personnel-restructuring program, the Group’s EBITDA would have remained on the previous year’s level of about €853 million. Although this adjusted EBITDA was curbed by previous year’s weaker traffic performance and a slowdown in FRA’s retail business, reflecting lower spending by passengers, the Group’s external business also had a compensating positive effect on EBITDA.
The Group result (net profit) increased by 34.8 percent to €400.3 million. Without the aforementioned effects and unscheduled depreciation and amortization, Fraport’s Group result would only have reached about €296 million. In contrast, operating cash flow declined by 10.6 percent to €583.2 million. Likewise, free cash flow contracted by 23.3 percent to €301.7 million, also due to ongoing construction of Frankfurt Airport’s future Terminal 3.
Traffic at the company’s Frankfurt Airport (FRA) home-base slightly declined by 0.4 percent to approximately 61 million passengers in 2016. This was, in particular, a result of the relatively weak spring and summer months characterized by markedly restrained travel bookings in the wake of geopolitical uncertainties. In the last quarter of 2016, traffic figures noticeably rebounded, even reaching a new December monthly record. Cargo tonnage expanded by 1.8 percent to some 2.1 million metric tons, helped by the economic recovery in summer 2016.
Fraport’s international portfolio of airports displayed mixed results in 2016. The strong 30.9 percent decline in traffic at Antalya Airport (AYT) in Turkey – which was impacted by the country’s geopolitical and security situation – could be largely offset by the traffic performance of Group airports at other locations. Strong growth was recorded in particular at Lima Airport (LIM) in Peru (up 10.1 percent), Burgas Airport (BOJ) and Varna Airport (VAR) on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast (up 22.0 percent and 20.8 percent, respectively), and Xi’an Airport (XIY) in China (up 12.2 percent).
On the basis of the Group’s positive financial performance, a dividend of €1.50 per share will be recommended to the 2017 Annual General Meeting. This corresponds to an increase of €0.15 or 11.1 percent per share and to a payout ratio of 36.9 percent of the Group result attributable to shareholders.
Commenting on Fraport AG’s business performance in 2016, executive board chairman Dr. Stefan Schulte stated: “Despite the challenges of the 2016 business year, we have achieved our best annual result ever. The sale of the 10.5 percent share in our Pulkovo Airport subsidiary in St. Petersburg has demonstrated that we are able to develop international airport concessions even amid difficult market environments. We will therefore continue to consistently pursue our strategy of operating a broadly diversified international portfolio.”
Per l'anno commerciale 2017, Fraport prevede che il traffico all'aeroporto di Francoforte crescerà dal 2 al 4%. Si prevede che i ricavi vedranno un notevole aumento fino a circa 2.9 miliardi di euro, sostenuti da una crescita positiva del traffico sia presso l’aeroporto di Francoforte che negli aeroporti internazionali del Gruppo Fraport. Anche il previsto consolidamento delle attività del Gruppo in Grecia contribuirà ad un deciso aumento dei ricavi. Si prevede che l’utile operativo (o EBITDA) del Gruppo raggiungerà un livello compreso tra circa 980 milioni di euro e 1,020 milioni di euro, mentre l’EBIT dovrebbe essere compreso tra circa 610 milioni di euro e 650 milioni di euro. Si prevede che il risultato del Gruppo sarà compreso tra 310 e 350 milioni di euro.
Per quanto riguarda le prospettive di business del Gruppo per il 2017, il CEO Schulte ha dichiarato: “Siamo ottimisti riguardo all’anno commerciale in corso e ci aspettiamo che il traffico dell’aeroporto di Francoforte cresca sia nel segmento low cost che nel traffico hub tradizionale. Allo stesso tempo, continueremo a sviluppare strategicamente il nostro business internazionale. Rilevando la gestione dei 14 aeroporti greci, libereremo ulteriore potenziale di crescita”.
In view of the expected long-term traffic growth at Frankfurt Airport, construction of the new Terminal 3 is being pushed forward as scheduled, with the first construction phase expected to be completed by 2023. The focus of Fraport’s international business is currently on the take-over of operations at the 14 Greek airports, which is expected to take place in the next few weeks.
Panoramica dei quattro segmenti di business di Fraport:
Aviazione:
Revenue in the Aviation business segment declined by 1.8 percent to €910.2 million in business year 2016. This was largely due to the slight drop in passenger traffic at Frankfurt Airport, the loss of the tender to perform security services in Concourse B, and lower revenue from the re-allocation of infrastructure costs. The creation of provisions for a personnel-restructuring program, higher wages in business year 2016 due to collective agreements, as well as higher non-staff costs let the segment’s EBITDA decline by 8.3 percent to €217.9 million. Depreciation and amortization increased significantly year-on-year, particularly due to the full unscheduled depreciation and amortization of the goodwill in the FraSec GmbH subsidiary in the amount of €22.4 million, as a result of the company’s lower long-term earnings forecast compared to previous years. Correspondingly, the segment’s EBIT significantly dropped by 39.5 percent to €70.4 million.
Vendita al dettaglio e proprietà immobiliari:
Nell'esercizio 1.2, nonostante il rallentamento nel sottosegmento Retail, i ricavi nel segmento Retail & Real Estate sono aumentati dell'493.9% attestandosi a 2016 milioni di euro. L'andamento dei ricavi è stato influenzato positivamente dalle vendite di terreni e dalla modifica della presentazione dei ricavi da locazione a causa delle variazioni dell'area di consolidamento legate alla vendita di azioni della controllata Frankfurt Cargo Services (FCS). I ricavi netti al dettaglio per passeggero sono stati pari a 3.49 € (2015: 3.62 €). Il calo è attribuibile alla minore spesa media dei passeggeri provenienti da Cina, Russia e Giappone, nonché all’impatto del deprezzamento di varie valute rispetto all’euro. L’EBITDA del segmento, con 368 milioni di euro, è diminuito del 2.9% rispetto all’anno precedente, in gran parte a causa delle maggiori spese per il personale. Ciò è dovuto in particolare alla maggiore domanda di manodopera, all’aumento dei salari fissati dai contratti collettivi e alla creazione di accantonamenti per un programma di ristrutturazione del personale. Con ammortamenti quasi stabili, l’EBIT del segmento ha raggiunto 283.6 milioni di euro (in calo del 3.9%).
Movimentazione a terra:
In the 2016 business year, revenue in the Ground Handling business segment markedly decreased by 6.3 percent to €630.4 million compared to the previous year. This was due, in particular, to the sale of shares in the Fraport Cargo Services (FCS) subsidiary and slightly declining passenger traffic at Frankfurt Airport. Adjusted for the effects from the sale of shares in FCS, segment revenue saw underlying growth of 1.8 percent. Reasons for this adjusted increase included a change in the presentation of personnel expenses as a result of changes in the scope of consolidation related to the sale of shares in the FCS subsidiary, as well as slightly higher revenue from infrastructure charges. The creation of provisions for a personnel-restructuring program and rising wages due to collective agreements led to a 25.2 percent decline in the segment’s EBITDA to €34.7 million. Contracting by €11.5 million to minus €5.5 million, the segment’s EBIT reached negative territory due to the provisions for the personnel-restructuring program.
Attività e servizi esterni:
Revenue in the External Activities & Services business segment increased by 8.1 percent to €551.7 million in business year 2016, supported in particular by the Group companies in Lima, Peru (up €27.8 million), Twin Star, Bulgaria (up €9.9 million) and Fraport USA Inc. (up €3.2 million). In addition, the compensation payment from the Manila terminal project and revenue gained from the sale of shares in Thalita Trading Ltd. had a markedly positive impact on the segment’s revenue. Due to these effects, also the segment’s EBITDA more than doubled, reaching €433.5 million (2015: €186.1 million). The segment’s EBIT showed similar growth, rising by €242.1 million to €345.2 million.
