Wirecard raises FY18 Ebitda guidance as 2017 revenues surge by 44.9%
In the 2017 fiscal year, Wirecard AG was able to push forward the digitalisation of payment processes very successfully across the world and greatly enhance its competitive advantage through the continuous expansion of its digital platform.
Operating earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased in 2017 compared to the previous year by 34.2 percent to EUR 412.6 million (PY: EUR 307.4 million). In the 2017 fiscal year, the EBITDA margin increased to 27.7 percent (PY: 29.9 percent). The cash flow from operating activities (adjusted) amounted to EUR 375.7 million (PY: EUR 283.0 million).
In the 2017 fiscal year, earnings after tax increased by 46.8 percent to EUR 259.7 million, compared to the earnings in 2016 adjusted for the special effect from the sale of Visa Europe of EUR 176.9 million. Thus earnings per share stood at EUR 2.10 (PY: EUR 1.43).
The Management Board will propose to this year’s Annual General Meeting that a dividend of EUR 0.18 per share (PY: EUR 0.16) is paid to shareholders.
Outlook
Wirecard has established an outstanding competitive position to also continue to benefit from the accelerating trend towards the digitalisation of payment processes in all sales channels in the future.
Wirecard CEO Dr. Markus Braun commented: “Digitalisation – and thus also the digitalisation of payment processes around the world – is gathering pace but it is still only at the very beginning in many sectors. Around 80 to 85 percent of all global transactions are still made in cash. Alongside continuously strong growth in the online and mobile sector, additional growth trends can also be identified in the advancing digitalisation at the point-of-sale and the convergence of all sales channels on one digital platform.”
Following the successful entry onto the US market in the first quarter of 2017, Wirecard is now represented in Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, North and South America and the Middle East and Africa and is pushing forward the expansion of its digital platform strategy globally.
Due to the strong organic business development, Wirecard Management Board has increased the EBITDA guidance for the fiscal year 2018 to EUR 520 million to EUR 545 million (previous guidance: EUR 510 million to EUR 535 million).
