SRV Yhtiöt Oyj: SRV Interim Report 1-3/2024: Revenue and operative operating profit increased, the order backlog remains strong

SRV GROUP PLC INTERIM REPORT 25 APRIL 2024 AT 08.30 EEST

SRV Interim Report 1-3/2024: Revenue and operative operating profit increased, the order backlog remains strong

January-March 2024 in brief

• Revenue amounted to EUR 167.0 (138.3) million (+20.7%). Revenue increased due to growth in business construction revenue. Revenue declined correspondingly in housing construction.
• Operative operating profit amounted to EUR 1.3 (-2.0) million with an operating profit of EUR 1.3 (-2.0) million. Operative operating profit improved thanks to the higher volume in business construction.
• The result before taxes was EUR 0.5 (-4.4) million. The result was positive because the volume grew and financial expenses were lower than in the comparison period.
• Earnings per share were EUR -0.0 (-0.2).
• Equity ratio was 33.9 per cent (35.0% 3/2023) and gearing was 80.5 per cent (82.2% 3/2023). Excluding the impact of IFRS 16, the equity ratio was 47.5 (49.2) per cent and gearing was 2.4 (4.1) per cent.
• At period-end, the order backlog stood at EUR 1,020.4 (871.0) million. New agreements valued at EUR 136.4 (149.9) million were signed in January-March. The sold share of the order backlog was 92.5 (91.0) per cent.
• At the end of March, emission intensity (scope 1 and 2) was 2.6 (4.6) tCO2/million euros of revenue. One of the factors contributing to the decrease in emission intensity was the greater use of biofuels.

Outlook 2024

During 2024, SRV's revenue and result will be affected by several factors in addition to general economic trends, such as: the margin of the order backlog and its development; the start-up of new contracts and development projects; geopolitical risks, including their related direct and indirect effects, such as material costs and the availability of materials and labour; and changes in demand. Higher interest rates and weaker availability of financing have a negative impact on demand for housing and business premises among consumers and investors, and thus pose uncertainty with respect to the estimated start-ups of new projects.

In 2024, revenue will mainly consist of relatively low-margin - yet also low-risk - cooperative contracting and, to a lesser extent, of development projects sold to investors as well as competitive and negotiated contracts for housing construction. Developer-contracted housing production will account for only a small percentage of revenue, as no developer-contracted housing projects are scheduled for completion during the year.

• Full-year consolidated revenue for 2024 is expected to grow compared with 2023 (revenue in 2023: EUR 610.0 million).
• Operative operating profit is expected to improve compared with 2023 (operative operating profit in 2023: EUR 1.1 million).
  

Significant events after the period

There were no significant events after the end of the review period.

President & CEO's review

"In the early months of 2024, the economy has remained in a recession and no significant changes have occurred in the general market situation. However, even in this challenging business environment, we have been able to systematically forge ahead with strong growth in business construction, especially in cooperative contracting. Due to the prevailing high interest levels, demand for the new properties in both the consumer and real estate investor markets is currently at a low level, which has a substantial impact on our opportunities to start new projects. The controllability of our production is robust and our realised project margins are in line with plans in both housing and business construction. We believe that strong development will begin immediately once the market provides opportunities to restructure our project portfolio in accordance with our strategy.

In spite of the economic climate in the construction industry, our business developed in a favourable direction in the first quarter, as expected. Our stronger order backlog is starting to show in our revenue, which saw year-on-year growth of around 20 per cent. Our operative operating profit also outperformed the comparison period thanks to the higher volume in business construction.

At the end of the review period, our order backlog was EUR 1,020.4 million, up 17 per cent year-on-year. The order backlog will lead to increased revenue when projects get up to full speed. In the first quarter, we transferred several projects into our order backlog, among them the Käkikellokortteli residential block in Nihti, Kalasatama for the City of Helsinki's housing production service as well as underground facilities and the second stage of infrastructure work for Laakso Joint Hospital. This order is part of an approximately EUR 800 million agreement for the Laakso Joint Hospital project, of which about half has been entered into our order backlog to date. The remaining phases will be entered into our order backlog in stages during 2024-2030. In addition, previously won contracts and projects under preliminary contracts will be recognised in our order backlog, with a value of around EUR 933 million.

In the current market situation, it is extremely important that our balance sheet is strong and our financing is in good shape. The total number of unsold completed residential units is low at 96, and the company has not committed a significant amount of its own capital into unsold housing. With respect to financing, in April, after the review period, we agreed with our main financier banks to exercise the one-year extension option of our current EUR 40 million committed revolving credit facility, which is tied to sustainability targets. In accordance with the exercised extension option, the revolving credit facility is valid until April 2026.

In February, we concluded the change negotiations we had initiated in January with a view to adjusting our costs to the ongoing challenging market situation. These negotiations resulted in slightly smaller personnel cuts and layoffs than anticipated, a total of 19 person-years. We managed to transfer roles and personnel from housing construction to business premises projects, and thereby retained solid expertise within the company.

We do not expect any changes in the market situation - a significant improvement is not foreseen until towards the end of the year at the earliest. Nevertheless, we expect that our revenue and earnings will improve in 2024 thanks to our strong order backlog in cooperative contracting. In addition, we believe that it will be possible to start up selected development or developer-contracted projects in the latter part of the year - the contributing factors are lower construction costs, forecast reductions in interest rates and gradual rent inflation, which support the investment decisions of our customers."

Saku Sipola

Key Figures

	1-3/	1-3/			1-12/
(IFRS, milj. eur)	2024	2023	change	change, %	2023
Revenue	167.0	138.3	28.7	20.7	610.0
Operative operating profit	1.3	-2.0	3.2		1.1
Operative operating profit, %	0.8	-1.4	2.2		0.2
Operating profit	1.3	-2.0	3.2		-6.8
Operating profit, %	0.8	-1.4	2.2		-1.1
Profit before taxes	0.5	-4.4	5.0		-15.7
Net profit for the period	0.5	-3.1	3.6		-15.1
Net profit for the period, %	0.3	-2.3	2.6		-2.5
Earnings per share 1)	-0.0	-0.2	0.2		-1.0
Order backlog (unrecognised)	1020.4	871.0	149.5	17.2	1048.6
Equity ratio, %	33.9	35.0	-1.1		34.4
Equity ratio, %, excl. IFRS 16 2)	47.5	49.2	-1.7		48.0
Net interest-bearing debt	112.1	117.4	-5.3		99.4
Net interest-bearing debt, excl. IFRS 16 2)	3.5	6.1	-2.7		-6.3
Net gearing ratio, %	80.5	82.2	-1.7		71.7
Net gearing ratio, %, excl. IFRS 16 2)	2.4	4.1	-1.7		-4.3
Financing reserves	68.2	52.6	15.7	29.8	78.6

1. The figure has been calculated excluding the hybrid bond interest, tax adjusted

2. The figure has been adjusted to remove the impacts of IFRS 16

Espoo, 25 April 2024
Board of Directors

All forward-looking statements in this interim report are based on management's current expectations and beliefs about future events. The company's actual results and financial position may differ materially from the expectations and beliefs such statements contain due to a number of factors that have been presented in this interim report.

Briefing, webcast and presentation materials

A briefing for analysts, investors and media representatives will be held as a webcast on 25 April 2024, starting at 11:00 EEST. The webcast can be followed live at www.srv.fi/en/investors. The recording will be available on the website after the presentation. The materials will also be made available on the website.

For further information, please contact:

Saku Sipola, President & CEO, tel. [phone], [e-mail]
Jarkko Rantala, CFO, tel. [phone], [e-mail]
Miia Eloranta, Senior Vice President, Communications and Marketing, tel. [phone], [e-mail]

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SRV in brief

SRV is a Finnish developer and innovator in the construction industry. We are building a more sustainable and responsible urban environment that fosters economic value and takes the wellbeing of both the environment and people into consideration. We call this approach lifecycle wisdom. Our genuine engagement and enthusiasm for our work comes across in every encounter - and listening is one of our most important ways of working. We believe that the only way to change the world is through discussion.

Our company, established in 1987, is listed on the Helsinki Stock Exchange. We operate in growth centres in Finland. In 2023, our revenue totalled EUR 610 million. In addition to approximately 800 in-house staff, we had a network of around 3,300 partners.

SRV - Building for life