Strong second quarter helps Tallink deliver steady result for first six months of 2019
Tallink Grupp has published its 2019 interim report with the year’s second quarter and first 6 months’ financial results. According to the report, during the second quarter of 2019 (April - June), the group transported a total of 2.7 million passengers, which is a 0.8% increase on the same period last year. The Group’s unaudited revenue for the second quarter also increased to EUR 256.1 million, which is 0.3% higher than in the second quarter in 2018.
The Group’s unaudited EBITDA for the second quarter increased by 16.6%, i.e. EUR 7.2 million and amounted to EUR 50.7 million. What is additionally notable, is that the second quarter comparable EBITDA, i.e. without IFRS 16 adoption effect, increased by 6.8%, i.e. EUR 3.0 million compared to the same period last year and was EUR 46.5 million. The adjusted EBITDA margin also increased in the second quarter of 2019 compared to the same period last year by 1.1%. The net profit for the second quarter was impacted by the higher income tax resulting from increased dividends paid out in 2019 and was EUR 14.9 million, which is a 2.6% reduction compared to the second quarter of 2018.
In the second quarter, the number of passengers increased in almost all the company’s geographical segments and the company reported transporting the highest numbers of passengers for the months of May and June. The highlights for the quarter were the Estonia-Finland route, where the passenger numbers increased by 0.5% compared to Q2 in 2018 despite increased competitive pressures and where the company set a new June passenger record, the Finland-Sweden routes where the number of passengers and cargo transported as well as the revenue all increased compared to Q2 2018, and the Latvia-Sweden route where the number of passengers and cargo transported and the revenue all continued a steady growth in the second quarter of 2019.
Overall the number of cargo units transported by the group in the second quarter of 2019 decreased by 1.5%, with a total of 99 546 cargo units transported in the quarter. However, cargo transportation continued to grow on the Finland-Sweden and Latvia-Sweden routes, by 0.4% and 7.4% respectively.
In the first six months (1 January – 30 June) of 2019 the company transported a total of 4.5 million passengers, which is a 1.2% decrease on the same period last year. The group’s unaudited revenue for the first 6 months was EUR 435.0 million, which is a 1% decrease compared to the same period last year. The group’s unaudited EBITDA for the six months, however, saw an increase compared to the same period in 2018 and was EUR 54.5 million (EUR 47.7 in 2018). The unaudited net loss in the first 6 months was EUR 10.4 million (EUR 4.3 million net loss in the first six months in 2018).
Commenting on the results, Paavo Nõgene, CEO of Tallink Grupp said:
“The significant increase of our EBITDA in the second quarter, increased passenger numbers and increased revenue, are all evidence of a strong second quarter and have all played a part in the overall steady outcome we have achieved for the first half of 2019.
The results of the second quarter were mainly impacted by the increased income tax compared to the same quarter last year with the payment of a total of EUR 33.5 million in dividends this year and increased competitive pressure on the Estonia-Finland routes, which inevitably had an effect on the ticket prices. In addition, the group made several investments in the quarter, the most notable being the prepayment for the new shuttle vessel in the amount of EUR 12.4 million.
All in all, we can be happy with the high-level results and the developments of the second quarter, which have helped deliver a steady half-year result and have laid a strong foundation for the overall outcome for 2019.
We have a number of plans in the pipeline and are focusing on a number of business areas to further improve the results for the second half of the year.”
