EANS-Adhoc: freenet AG increases guidance for the financial year 2011
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ad-hoc disclosure pursuant to section 15 of the WpHG transmitted by euro
adhoc with the aim of a Europe-wide distribution. The issuer is solely
responsible for the content of this announcement.
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6-month report
09.08.2011
Büdelsdorf, 9 August 2011 - The Executive Board of freenet AG has raised its
full-year forecast for 2011 based on the results for the first half of 2011, and
is now expecting recurring Group EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes and
depreciation/amortisation) - adjusted for one-off items - to reach 350 million
euros (previously: 325 million euros) and free cash flow* to exceed 220 million
euros (previously: over 200 million euros) for the full year 2011.
In the first half of 2011, despite continuing intense competitive pressure,
freenet AG generated recurring Group EBITDA of 173.9 million euros and free cash
flow of 124.2 million euros.
Due to a year-on-year reduction in its customer base, Group revenue fell as
expected in the first half of 2011, to 1,546.3 million euros (-5.6 percent
year-on-year).
freenet AG increased its Group result from continued operations by 0.8 million
euros, from 45.9 million euros in the first half of 2010 to 46.7 million euros
in the first six months of 2011. The Group result including discontinued
operations amounted to 46.9 million euros (first half of 2010: 44.4 million
euros).
The number of mobile communications customers stood at 15.20 million at the end
of the first half of 2011. As a result of the continued qualitative alignment,
the number of postpaid customers decreased by 97,000 in the second quarter of
2011, thus declining at a markedly slower pace than was the case in previous
quarters (decline in Q1/2011: 174,000). After another very good month in terms
of customer acquisition in July 2011 freenet AG expects to lose less than
450,000 postpaid customers for the full year 2011 (previously: less than
500,000).
Compared with the previous quarter, the monthly average revenue per user (ARPU)
in the second quarter of 2011 increased across all business segments. Cumulative
postpaid ARPU for the first half year stabilised at 23.5 euros, exactly the same
as in the comparable period last year.
freenet AG´s complete interim report on the first half of 2011 will be available
for download at http://www.freenet-group.de/investor soon.
* Free cash flow is defined as cash flow from operating activities, minus
investments in property, plant and equipment and intangible assets, plus
proceeds from the disposal of property, plant and equipment and intangible
assets.
Further inquiry note:
freenet AG
Investor Relations
Tel.: +49 (0)40 513 06-778
E-Mail: ir@freenet.ag
end of announcement euro adhoc
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issuer: freenet AG
Hollerstraße 126
D-24782 Büdelsdorf
phone: +49 (0)4331 691000
mail: ir@freenet.ag
WWW: http://www.freenet-group.de
sector: Telecommunications
ISIN: DE000A0Z2ZZ5
indexes: Midcap Market Index, TecDAX, CDAX, HDAX, Prime All Share,
Technology All Share
stockmarkets: regulated dealing/prime standard: Frankfurt, free trade: Berlin,
Hamburg, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf, Hannover, München
language: English