CentralNic Group plc LON:CNIC), the global internet platform company that generates recurring revenues selling online presence and marketing services, has announced its trading update for the full year 2022.
Trading Update
The Company now expects to report record gross revenue of c.USD 728 million, and net revenue and Adjusted EBITDA1 of at least USD 177 million and USD 85 million respectively for the financial year 2022. These represent increases of c.77%, c.33% and c.84% respectively versus the prior year, ahead of the recently upgraded market consensus2 for 2022. Adjusted for acquisitions and FX, year-on-year organic growth3 for 2022 was c.60%. This outperformance has been driven largely by the growth of the Online Marketing segment, reflecting increased demand for our privacy-safe online customer acquisition services, and the resulting economies of scale and consequent operating leverage.
Cash increased to c.USD 95m as at 31 December 2022 from c.USD 56m as at 31 December 2021, whilst Net Debt4 decreased to c.USD 57m as at 31 December 2022 from c.USD 81m as at 31 December 2021. Adjusted operating cash conversion continued to be in excess of 100%.
CEO, Michael Riedl, stated, “CentralNic ended the year 2022 on a high note, with record revenue and profit in a challenging economic environment. This is a testament to the outstanding business portfolio we have built as a team. We will continue to exhibit discipline and efficiency as we accelerate product rollouts, launch strategic partnerships, and enhance scalability in the year ahead. As a result, we anticipate another year of robust growth and shareholder returns. I look forward to updating on our continued progress throughout 2023.”
Board changes
The Company also announces today that William “Billy” Green, who was appointed Group CFO on 12 December 2022, has been appointed to the board of directors with immediate effect.
At the same time, Don Baladasan, Group Managing Director, steps down from the main board. Don has played a crucial role in the Company’s transformation, leading the team and systems that has helped position CentralNic to achieve its sustainable growth. He will continue to serve on the supervisory boards of CentralNic’s subsidiaries Team Internet AG and VGL Publishing AG.
Michael Riedl, Chief Executive Officer, commented: “I am pleased to welcome Billy Green to the Board and I am confident that his financial expertise and structured approach will make him a valuable member of the team.
I would like to thank Don for his contributions over the past years and his dedication and enthusiasm will be greatly missed. I and rest of the CentralNic Board express our sincere gratitude for his service and wish him the best for the future.”
Don Baladasan, Group Managing Director of CentralNic, stated: “I am proud of the transformation CentralNic has achieved over the last five and a half years. I am confident that the Company will continue to flourish and thrive under Michael’s leadership. I look forward to contributing to CentralNic’s continued success as a supervisory board member of Team Internet AG and VGL Publishing AG and being a supportive shareholder.”
1 Parent, subsidiary and associate earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation, non-cash charges and non-core operating expenses. Non-core operating expenses include items related primarily to acquisition, integration and other related costs, which are not incurred as part of the underlying trading performance of the Group, and which are therefore adjusted for, in line with Group policy.
2 Analyst consensus of revenue and adjusted EBITDA for the financial year ending 31 December 2022 as of 29 January 2023 and last updated on 6 January 2023 is USD 708.5m (analyst range of USD 701m to USD 715m) and USD 82.7m (analyst range of USD 80m to USD 85.1m) respectively.
3 Organic growth is calculated based on trailing twelve-month pro-forma revenue adjusted for acquired revenue, constant currency FX impact and non-recurring and non-cash items (c.USD 743m and c.USD 465m for financial years 2022 and 2021 respectively).
4 Includes gross cash, interest-bearing debt and prepaid finance costs.
