Eutelsat Communications (ISIN: FR0010221234 - Euronext Paris: ETL) reports revenues for the First Quarter ended 30 September 2019.
Rodolphe Belmer, Chief Executive Officer, commented: “The first Quarter has seen a number of milestones in our Connectivity strategy, with the procurement of EUTELSAT 10B with significant pre-commitments in the mobility segment and the foundations laid for the IoT strategy, notably with the order of our first ELO constellation nanosatellites. Elsewhere, we have added a further lever to our cash flow strategy with the roll-out of the LEAP 2 cost-savings plan, aiming to generate opex economies of €20-25 million by FY 2021-22, which will be reinvested in our future growth verticals whilst preserving our EBITDA margin.
Despite our expectation that the revenues profile for the current year will be back-end loaded, the outturn of the First Quarter is slightly below our expectations, notably due to worsening trends in Data & Professional Video and the unplanned return of a couple of transponders in Russia. On the other hand, the coming quarters will benefit from easing comps in Government Services and Data & Professional Video, the contribution of new capacity and the ramp-up of African Broadband.
We therefore confirm our Full Year objective of revenues for the Operating Verticals of between€1,280 million and €1,320 million, albeit with an increased likelihood of a landing in the lower half of this range. All other elements of the financial outlook are also reiterated. These objectives are subject to a nominal deployment plan, and notably the outcome of tests on the condition of the EUTELSAT 5 West B satellite.”
[1]Change at constant currency and perimeter. The variation is calculated as follows: i) Q1 2019-20 USD revenues are converted at Q1 2018-19 rates; ii) Q1 2018-19 revenues are restated from the disposal of Eutelsat’s interest in Eutelsat 25B which occurred in August 2019.
[2]Other revenues include mainly compensation paid on the settlement of business-related litigations, the impact of EUR/USD revenue currency hedging, the provision of various services or consulting/engineering fees and termination fees.
Source: Eutelsat Press Release