Company Announcement No. 630
"2015 was a good year for DSV. We gained market share across all business segments and delivered strong growth in earnings and cash flow. The Air & Sea Division was the main contributor to the growth in earnings, but the Road Division also delivered a good comeback. 2015 was the year in which we executed on our strategy to grow through acquisitions. In January 2016, we obtained the final approval of the acquisition of UTi Worldwide Inc. We now have a major project ahead of us — the merger of two global logistics providers and lifting the UTi earnings to DSV levels," says Jens Bjørn Andersen, CEO.
Selected financial and operating data for the 2015 financial statements (1 January - 31 December 2015)
| (DKKm) | Q4 2015 | Q4 2014 | YTD 2015 | YTD 2014 |
| Net revenue | 12,606 | 12,539 | 50,869 | 48,582 |
| Gross profit | 2,830 | 2,615 | 11,201 | 10,297 |
| Operating profit before special items | 749 | 649 | 3,050 | 2,624 |
| Operating margin | 5.9% | 5.2% | 6.0% | 5.4% |
| Conversion ratio | 26.5% | 24.8% | 27.2% | 25.5% |
| Adjusted earnings | 2,211 | 1,835 | ||
| Adjusted free cash flow | 2,837 | 1,472 | ||
| Diluted adjusted earnings per share of DKK 1 | 12.85 | 10.53 | ||
| Proposed dividend per share (DKK) | 1.70 | 1.60 | ||
| Operating profit before special items | ||||
| Air & Sea | 492 | 399 | 1,923 | 1,542 |
| Road | 197 | 174 | 918 | 837 |
| Solutions | 63 | 90 | 242 | 274 |
Q4 2015 results
For Q4 2015, net revenue amounted to DKK 12,606 million against DKK 12,539 million for Q4 2014. The Air & Sea Division reported a drop in net revenue mainly as a result of lower average freight rates, whereas the Road Division achieved organic net revenue growth of 3.9% and DSV Solutions reported net revenue in line with last year. Freight volume growth for the quarter was 6% for air freight, 1% for sea freight, 6% for Road and 7% for Solutions.
Gross profit was up by 8.2% at DKK 2,830 million for Q4 2015 against DKK 2,615 million for the same period of 2014. Air & Sea landed organic growth of 9.0% and was affected by increasing volumes and high gross profit per shipments. Road achieved organic gross profit growth of 4.1%, whereas Solutions reported gross profit in line with 2014 despite growth in order lines.
Operating profit before special items amounted to DKK 749 million against DKK 649 million for Q4 2014. Organic growth was 10.1%. The Air & Sea and Road divisions achieved earnings growth, whereas Solutions reported a decline.
Dividend
Based on the financial results for the year, the Board of Directors proposes ordinary dividends of DKK 1.70 per share for 2015 (2014: DKK 1.60 per share).
Outlook for 2016
- Operating profit before special items is expected to be in the range of DKK 3,100-3,500 million
- Net financial expenses are expected to approximate DKK 450 million
- The effective tax rate of the Group is expected to be approximately 25%
The group expects integration costs of approx. DKK 1,500 million in relation to the integration of UTi Worldwide Inc. The integration costs will be charged to the income statement under special items in 2016 and 2017.
Due to the UTi acquisition, no guidance is provided in regards to gross profit and free cash flow for 2016.
Investor teleconference
DSV will host an investor teleconference on 10 February 2016 at 11.00 a.m. CET. Reference is made to Company Announcement No. 629 for further details.
Inquiries relating to the Annual Report
Questions may be addressed to:
- Jens Bjørn Andersen, CEO, tel. +45 43 20 30 40
- Jens H. Lund, CFO, tel. +45 43 20 30 40
- Flemming Ole Nielsen, Director Investor Relations, tel. +45 43 20 33 92.
This announcement has been forwarded to Nasdaq Copenhagen and to the press. It is also available at www.dsv.com. The announcement has been prepared in Danish and in English. In the event of discrepancies, the Danish version prevails.
Yours sincerely,
DSV A/S