Release of 14.02.2023
- Group revenues passing EUR 5 billion
- Service revenues up in all markets
- Higher investments in fiber and 5G rollout
- Credit rating upgraded by S&P to A-; best S&P rating in the company's history
- Increased dividend proposal of EUR 0.32 per share
Thomas Arnoldner, CEO of A1 Group on the highlights of 2022:
"In 2022 we successfully continued our growth path of the past years, which is also above average in international comparison. A very good financial and operational performance characterized the year as a whole despite a challenging macroeconomic environment. Group revenues exceeded the EUR 5 billion threshold with an increase of 5.4%. EBITDA increased by 7.7% as solid service revenue growth in all markets more than offset the increase in costs. Net result in 2023 increased to EUR 635.0 million euros from EUR 455.0 million in 2022.
Based on the strong results, the Management Board plans to propose an increased dividend of EUR 0.32 (2021: EUR 0.28) per share at the Annual General Meeting, subject to approval by the Supervisory Board.
Solid financial performance goes hand in hand with actively practicing environmental and social responsibility. We also achieved success in the area of ESG: in December, the A1 Group was recognized by the global non-profit environmental organization Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) for its leading role in corporate transparency and its climate change performance with an A rating - the highest possible.
The outlook for 2023 is positive. We expect revenue growth of around 4% for A1 Group. CAPEX will be around EUR 950 million (excluding spectrum investments), with a focus on fibre in Austria and 5G roll-out across the Group."
Alejandro Plater, COO of A1 Group adds:
"Positive trends prevailed in most markets in 2022 and strong demand for high bandwidth, ICT solutions and connectivity remained stable. Service revenues increased by 5.2% for the full year with growth in all markets.
The number of mobile subscribers increased by 5.0% to a total of 24 million at the end of 2022, with growth driven primarily by strong growth in M2M business. The number of Internet@home customers grew by 5.4% in the Group, driven by strong demand for mobile WiFi routers, but also for broadband RGUs.
In an environment of rising costs, especially energy costs, we continued to focus consistently on implementing efficiency measures.
In October, Standard & Poor's (S&P) upgraded the A1 Group's credit rating to A-. This is the best S&P rating in the Group's history. The improved rating reflects the strong operating performance and prudent financial policy.
The spin-off of the mobile towers is expected to be completed in the course of 2023 - subject to the necessary corporate and regulatory approvals.With this step, we are following international examples, creating more transparency and generating better use of existing assets."
More information is available: https://newsroom.a1.group/News.aspx?l=english