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Annual results for 2012: Flughafen Wien AG reports sound revenue and earnings development in 2012

EBITDA at € 221.4 million (+17.1%), net profit after non-controlling interests of € 71.9 million

Dividend recommendation: slight increase to € 1.05 per share (2012: € 1.00)

The Flughafen Wien Group recorded a major improvement in all relevant indicators during 2012. Revenue rose by 4.4% to € 607.4 million and EBITDA by 17.1% to € 221.4 million, while EBIT increased 60.8% to € 108.0 million. After the previous year’s earnings were negatively affected by numerous non-recurring effects, net profit after non-controlling interests rose to € 71.9 million (+127.5%) for the reporting year. The EBITDA margin improved from 32.5% to 36.5% and the EBIT margin from 11.5 % to 17.8%.

“Our company is on the right course. In 2012 we significantly increased productivity and also generated profitable growth. These developments were supported, above all, by the successful streamlining of the organisation, numerous efficiency improvement measures and a reduction in financing costs and personnel expenses. Net debt was reduced by a notable amount from € 751.7 million to € 719.6 million.

Our goals for 2013 are clear: we want to continue our profitable growth and further reduce net debt. At the same time, we want to strengthen our earning power by making better use of our revenue-generating opportunities. One particular focal point is the development and marketing of the airport as a real estate location“, explained Günther Ofner, member of the Management Board (CFO) of Flughafen Wien AG.

“Vienna Airport recorded a sound increase of 5% in the number of passengers during 2012 and grew almost three-times faster than the European average. This development is also reflected in solid operating results. For 2013, we expect more level traffic growth. A very important point in this context is the addition of four new destinations to our summer flight plan in 2013 as well as new long-haul connections from Vienna to Chicago and, starting in winter 2013/14, to Mombasa.

We are also making good progress with the modernisation of the infrastructure and expansion of the retail and gastronomy offering. More than four-fifths of the retail space is in operation and new outlets are opening continuously. Our goal is to improve the quality of services for travellers. We are working to make this goal reality, for example, with new services for families and people with special“, commented Julian Jäger, member of the Management Board (COO) of Flughafen Wien AG.

The Management Board and the Supervisory Board would like to thank the FWAG employees for their commitment in 2012. Their strong motivation in addressing the challenges of the restructuring process played an important role in the successes registered during the past year.

 

Based on the development of business, a proposal will be placed before the annual general meeting on 30 April 2013 to distribute a slightly higher dividend of € 1.05 per share for 2012 (2011: € 1.00). This represents a total dividend of € 22.05 million. The employees of FWAG also benefit from this dividend through the employee foundation, which holds 10% of the shares. Based on the share price at year-end 2012, the dividend yield equals 2.4%. The pay-out ratio as a per cent of net profit for the year equals 30.5%, compared with 66.5% in 2011.

Vienna Airport handled 22,165,794 passengers in 2012 and, with an increase of 5.0%, clearly outpaced the European average. The number of transfer passengers rose by 8.1% year-on-year. Traffic to Eastern Europe increased 12.1% in 2012, while traffic to the Middle East rose by 8.3%. The number of passengers travelling to destinations in the Far East declined 5.9%.

Austrian Airlines Group with the largest share of passengers

A ranking of the airlines based on the share of passengers carried is led by the Austrian Airlines Group with 49.5%, followed by NIKI with 12.0%, airberlin with 6.3% and Lufthansa with 5.5%. The average seat occupancy on scheduled and charter flights rose noticeably from 69.6% in 2011 to 73.0% in 2012. Flight movements declined 0.6% to 244,650. Maximum take-off weight (MTOW) was 1.7% lower than the previous year at 8,126,315 tonnes. Cargo turnover (incl. trucking) fell 9.2% to 252,276 tonnes. A total of 71 airlines offered scheduled flights from Vienna to 179 destinations in 67 countries during 2012.

The Airport Segment recorded a 7.8% increase in revenue to € 317.8 million in 2012. This increase was supported primarily by the growth in passenger traffic. EBIT increased 20% to € 68.5 million. The situation in the Handling Segment was difficult with a decline of 4.2% in revenue to € 153.8 million. However, EBIT of € 17.7 million also includes security services and handling services provided by Vienna Aircraft Handling (VAH) thereby improving earnings substantially. The Retail & Properties Segment increased revenue by 8.0% to € 119.5 million and EBIT by 37.1% to € 41.6 million. Revenue in the reporting segment “Other Segments“ remained stable at the prior year level of € 16.1 million in 2012 (EBIT € 4.4 million).

FWAG invested € 101.8 million in 2012. The budget for 2013 calls for investments of € 115 million, with a total of € 590 million planned for the period from 2011 to 2015. The costs for the terminal extension Check-in 3 (formerly Skylink), which started operations in 2012, will be less than € 740 million from the current point of view. Claims of over € 21 million for damages have already been recognised. Flughafen Wien will continue to actively pursue its claims and utilise all available legal options.

In spite of the general economic uncertainty, the Management Board of Flughafen Wien views the development of business in 2013 with optimism. Revenue should increase to over € 625 million and a significant improvement in EBITDA to at least € 230 million is expected. Profit for the period should exceed € 65 million, and net debt should continue to decline.

The report of Flughafen Wien AG on the 2012 financial year from 1 January to 31 December 2012 is available to the general public at the headquarters of the company, 1300 Flughafen Wien and is also available for download at http://ir.viennaairport.com under under the menu point “Publications and reports“, subpoint “Financial reports“.

The annual report by Flughafen Wien AG on the 2011 financial year from 1 January to 31 December 2012 is available to the general public at the headquarters of the company, 1300 Flughafen Wien and at Bank Austria, 1010 Vienna, Schottengasse 6-8. It is also available for download at http://ir.viennaairport.com under the menu point “Publications and reports“, subpoint “Annual reports“.

Flughafen Wien, 20 March 2013                                                The Management Board

Press office:                                                           Investor Relations:

Peter Kleemann (+43-1-) 7007-23000                         Judit Helenyi (+43-1-)7007-23126

Clemens Schleinzer (+43-1-) 7007-22399                   Mario Santi (+43-1-) 7007-22826

Stefanie Tomanek (+43-1-) 7007-26939                      j.helenyi@viennaairport.com

p.kleemann@viennaairport.com                                m.santi@viennaairport.com

c.schleinzer@viennaairport.com                                      

s.tomanek@viennaairport.com