CEWE starts the 2023 business year with a strong Q1

CEWE starts the 2023 business year with a strong Q1
 

• Turnover increases by 13.5% to 157.7 million euros, EBIT rises to 5.1 million euros
• CEWE PHOTOBOOK volume increases by 9.9%
• Commercial Online-Print also continues high growth and earnings momentum
• Strong first quarter confirms annual forecast for 2023

 
Oldenburg, May 11, 2023. CEWE Stiftung & Co. KGaA (SDAX, ISIN: DE 0005403901) has made an excellent start to the 2023 business year. Group turnover increased significantly by +13.5% to 157.7 million euros in the first quarter of 2023, recording the highest figure in the company's history for a first quarter (Q1 2022: 138.9 million euros). All business segments contributed positively to this. At the same time, Group EBIT improved by 3.0 million euros to 5.1 million euros (Q1 2022: 2.1 million euros). The earnings momentum is largely driven by the Photofinishing business segment (plus 2.7 million euros EBIT) and Commercial Online-Print (plus 0.7 million euros EBIT). "The strongest first quarter in terms of turnover in the company's history is a promising start to the year. With our complementary brand portfolio, high innovative strength and broad positioning across the various segments and markets, we will continue CEWE's success story.  Together with our employees and partners, we want to preserve the values that have made CEWE strong over decades and at the same time develop promising opportunities for the future. In this context, sustainability is always very important to us," emphasized Yvonne Rostock, Chairwoman of the Board of Management of CEWE Stiftung & Co. KGaA. She highlighted "that the planned 14th dividend increase in a row is a strong expression of continuity and reliability". With the strong development of the first quarter, the company is on course to achieve its annual targets: CEWE management forecasts Group turnover in a range of up to 780 million euros and a Group EBIT of up to 82 million euros for 2023.

Photofinishing with record turnover in the first quarter

Photofinishing turnover increased by +12.0% to 126.1 million euros in the first quarter of 2023 (Q1 2022: 112.6 million euros). Here, the significantly increased volume of photos again after the Corona pandemic due to vacation trips, events and family celebrations had an impact, which led to a visibly higher demand for CEWE photo products in all product categories. Thus, sales volume of the CEWE PHOTOBOOK in the first quarter of 2023, at 1.256 million copies, exceeded the previous year's figure by +9.9% (Q1 2022: 1.143 million copies). The Photofinishing EBIT doubled to 5.2 million euros (Q1 2022: 2.5 million euros).

Commercial Online-Print again increases significantly and improves earnings

Commercial Online-Print continued to grow strongly in the first quarter of 2023, recording a turnover growth of +26.6% to EUR 22.6 million (Q1 2022: EUR 17.8 million). Based on the persistently optimized cost structure and the higher turnover base, the business unit posted positive EBIT of +0.4 million euros for the first time already in a first quarter (Q1 2022: -0.3 million euros). The cost efficiency now achieved in production and the successfully implemented "best price guarantee" at Saxoprint allow Commercial Online-Print to continue to grow profitably.

CEWE Retail records turnover plus

Hardware Retail continued to develop slightly positively with turnover growth of +3.3% to 6.7 million euros (Q1 2022: 6.5 million euros). In the typically seasonally weak first quarter, the business unit improved EBIT slightly to -0.2 million euros (Q1 2022: -0.3 million euros).

Traditionally solid equity ratio rises to a strong 67.1%

After an already very solid level in the previous year (March 31, 2022: 64.0%), the equity ratio increased further to currently 67.1%. The return on capital employed (ROCE) also developed positively, rising from 15.9% in the same quarter of the previous year to a very respectable 17.9% as of March 31, 2023.

2023 outlook confirmed with Q1 results

CEWE's management sees the results of the first quarter as confirmation of the targets set and confirms the outlook for 2023: Group turnover is expected to reach a level in the range of 720 to 780 million euros in 2023, Group EBIT is expected to be in the corridor of 70 to 82 million euros in 2023. The ranges of these targets reflect the uncertainties that could potentially arise from inflation-related increases in the cost of sales and demand. At present, however, the persistently high inflation has no noticeable influence on the ordering behavior of customers and thus on the development of CEWE's turnover.

Annual General Meeting on June 7 to approve 14th consecutive dividend increase

The Executive Board and Supervisory Board have proposed to the Annual General Meeting that the dividend should be increased to 2.45 euros per dividend-bearing share on the basis of the results for fiscal 2022 (dividend for fiscal 2021: 2.35 euros). Subject to shareholder approval at the Annual General Meeting to be held on June 7, 2023, the dividend of 2.45 euros per share now proposed (based on the 2022 year-end price of 88.70 euros) corresponds to a dividend yield of 2.8%. This is the fourteenth dividend increase in succession and also the highest dividend in the company's history. According to the most comprehensive 'Dividend Study Germany 2023' recently published by Dividenden Adel, isf Institut and Deutsche Schutzvereinigung für Wertpapierbesitz DSW, CEWE is thus one of the top 3 out of all 644 German stock exchange companies that can present a dividend that has been increasing for so many years.

Overview Results Q1 2023

Rounding differences may occur. Exact values have always been used for percentage deviation calculations.

Notes to the "Earnings by Business Segment" chart

(1) Photofinishing:  Production and sale of photo products such as the CEWE PHOTO BOOK, calendars, greeting cards, wall art and individual (analogue and digital) photos as well as other photo products

(2) Retailing: Trading in photo hardware, such as cameras and lenses, in Norway, Sweden, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia

(3) Commercial online printing: Production and sale of commercial print products in the online printing portals of SAXOPRINT, viaprinto and LASERLINE

Should you have any queries, please contact:
CEWE Stiftung & Co. KGaA, Axel Weber (Investor Relations)
Tel.: 0441 / 404 - 552, Fax: 0441 / 404 - 421, Email: IR@cewe.de

Internet:  cewe.de , pixum.de , deindesign.de , whitewall.com , cheerz.com ,   

saxoprint.de, viaprinto.de , laser-line.de

The CEWE apps are all available in the app stores: CEWE PHOTO WORLD, CEWE POSTCARD and other photo apps, and the CEWE Investor Relations app for iPad© or android tablets, with annual reports and quarterly reports, presentations and sustainability reports.

You are welcome to join us at one of these investment conferences or to follow up on our pending publications:

Financial schedule

(insofar as already scheduled)

07.06.2023 Annual General Meeting 2023, Weser-Ems-Halle Oldenburg

11.08.2023 Publication Interim Report H1 2023

19.09.2023 Berenberg & Goldman Sachs German Corporate Conference 2023, Munich

20.09.2023 Baader Investment Conference 2023, Munich

10.11.2023 Publication Interim Statement Q3 2023

28.11.2023 Deutsches Eigenkapitalforum 2023, Frankfurt

About CEWE:

The CEWE Group is Europe's leading photo service and online printing supplier.

From its beginnings in 1912, CEWE has progressed to become the leading photo service company for all those wanting to make more of their photos. This is mainly due to the much-awarded CEWE PHOTOBOOK, with about six million books being sold each year. Customers can purchase other personalised photo products under the brand names of CEWE, Pixum, WhiteWall and Cheerz – and from many leading retailers in Europe. They are inspired to produce a variety of creative designs from their personal photos in these brand environments, entrusting the company with more than 2 billion photos every year.

The CEWE Group has also set up a highly efficient production system for advertising prints and business prints for the online printing market. Every year billions of high-quality printed products are delivered reliably to their purchasers through the SAXOPRINT, LASERLINE and viaprinto sales platforms.

The CEWE Group, through the founder family of Neumüller as an anchor shareholder, focuses on sustainable corporate management and has already received many awards for this effort:  economically sustainable in the long term; cooperative and fair in dealings with customers, employees and suppliers; socially responsible and protective of the environment and resources. An example of this is the climate-neutral process used to produce all the CEWE brand-name products.

The CEWE Group has a staff of 4,000 employees and operates in 21 countries. CEWE is listed on the SDAX. More information is available at company.cewe.de.