JCDecaux Signals Healthy Growth During 2003
Outdoor media giant JCDecaux has announced strong earnings growth during what chairman Jean-Francois Decaux described as a “milestone” 2003.
The group also predicted increased growth throughout 2004 as it published full-year results today, announcing “record results” and “the highest margins among the international players.”
The company’s net income increased by 57.3% to €40.9 million during the last year. This was due mainly to an €18.9 million increase in operating income and improvements in interest charges, falling to €4.7 million.
The group also saw consolidated revenues of €1,543.8 million, a dip of 2.2% on 2002, although the company justified these, stating that “excluding acquisitions and foreign exchange impact, organic revenues increased by 1.3% in 2003”.
Transport media saw a massive increase of 45.7%, with the company citing an increased spend in airports as the main driving force for improvement. The report also revealed that earnings had increased in all regions, except Asia-Pacific, where revenues were hit by the SARS outbreak.
The group saw a decrease in billboard earnings, falling 1.8% to €54.4 million, but managed to cut costs and increase profit margins in the UK due to a series of “well invested estates”.
Commenting on the results, Jean-Francois Decaux said: “2003 was a milestone year for the Group: we reached an operating income margin of nearly 15%, continued to generate strong cash flows, became the second largest outdoor advertising Group in the world and, more importantly, achieved the highest margins among the international players.”
He added: “We expect slight growth in organic revenues in the first quarter of 2004, with organic revenue growth getting stronger in the second quarter. For the full year 2004, we expect the Group’s organic revenue growth to be stronger than that achieved in 2003, leading to further improvement in profitability.”
Earlier this month JCDecaux was appointed as the exclusive provider of media sales for Tesco TV, a new in-store marketing channel with the potential to reach an audience of 10 million consumers every week, roughly the same amount of people who watched the final of ITV’s I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here (see JCDecaux Secures Nationwide Tesco TV Contract).
The optimistic figures follow publication of results by the Outdoor Advertising Association showing record revenues for the UK outdoor advertising industry for the three months to December 2003. The sector is now on course to command a record 10% market share (see Outdoor Results Show Record Growth And Market Share).
JCDecaux: 020 7298 8000 www.jcdecaux.co.uk
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