BIGBEN INTERACTIVE BIGBEN INTERACTIVE
Press Release
Lesquin, 19 January 2015, 6 pm
Turnover for the 3rd quarter of 2014/2015: €73.9 Million, up 3.0%
ANNUAL Prospects
Turnover target at €190 Million
with current operating profitability impacted by the falling Euro
| IFRS - €M Turnover | 2014/2015 | 2013/2014 | Change |
| 1st Quarter | 35.4 | 32.0 | + 10.6% |
| 2nd Quarter (1) | 38.5 | 36.2 | + 6.2% |
| 3rd Quarter (2) | 73.9 | 71.7 | + 3.0% |
| CUMULATIVE TO 31 Dec. 2014 (9 months) | 147.7 | 139.9 | + 5.5% |
(1) Turnover released = €37.8M. Modifications after closure
(2) Unaudited data
Business improved during the most important quarter of the year
During the third quarter of the 2014/2015 financial year (from 1 October to 31 December 2014), a crucial period for the company that accounts for some 40% of turnover, Bigben Interactive achieved a turnover of €73.9 M, up 3.0 % over the same period of the previous financial year.
This performance was essentially achieved thanks to the Group's Core Business which came to €70.2 M (up 2.8% over the previous year):
- Accessories for Smartphones (at €30.0 M, down 13.1% over the previous year), were concentrated primarily on Group products offering improved margins, so that despite a slowing in volumes, profitability improved.
Continuing sales success with Turtle Beach headsets cushioned the slowdown in the Gaming Accessories sector (€14.3 M, down 10.1% over the previous year).
- In line with the strong growth (38.1%) seen during the first quarter of the financial year, the Audio business has kept up its pace, up 37.2% during the third quarter thanks to the growing contribution from products licensed from Thomson.
- Publishing (at €9.6 M, up 39.7% over the previous year) benefited from sales of Rugby 15, the outstanding video game performer this year and Bigben Interactive's greatest publishing success ever.
Furthermore, digital sales of video games continue to progress well with a catalogue that is growing by the month.
Distribution, a non-core activity with an unpredictable sales trend, achieved a turnover of €3.7 over the period, up 6.7% over the previous year.
Business breakdown by speciality
| Turnover in € Millions | 3rd quarter 2014/2015 | Relative share | 3rd quarter 2013/2014 | Relative share | Change |
| Core Business | 70.2 | 95.0 % | 68.3 | 95.2 % | + 2.8 % |
| Accessories (Gaming+Smartphones+IT) | 45.6 | 61.7 % | 50.5 | 70.4 % | - 9.6 % |
| Audio | 15.0 | 20.3 % | 10.9 | 15.2 % | + 37.2 % |
| Publishing | 9.6 | 13.0 % | 6.9 | 9.6 % | + 39.7 % |
| Distribution | 3.7 | 5.0 % | 3.4 | 4.8 % | + 6.7 % |
| Total | 73.9 | 100 % | 71.7 | 100 % | + 3.0 % |
Business breakdown by area, combining domestic and export sales from these areas (like for like figures)
| Turnover in € Millions | 3rd Quarter 2014/2015 | 3rd Quarter 2013/2014 | Change |
| France | 57.0 | 58.7 | - 3.0 % |
| Germany | 7.3 | 6.4 | + 13.6 % |
| Benelux | 5.5 | 4.2 | + 30.9 % |
| Other territories | 4.1 | 2.3 | +76.0 % |
| Total | 73.9 | 71.7 | + 3.0 % |
Prospects at end of March 2015 for the 2014/2015 financial year
Sales
The Group is confident that sales are going the right way after three successive quarters of growth and therefore forecasts an annual turnover of €190 M.
Current Operating Income
Bigben Interactive optimised its product mix during the first nine months of the 2014/2015 financial year in order to improve margins and continued a strict management of overheads. These actions have, as expected, ensured a considerable improvement in annual profits. These profits should however be impacted by €4.0 M due to the one-off effect of the considerable fall in the Euro against the US Dollar.
In due consideration of the above, Bigben Interactive Group is now lowering its previous forecast of a Current Operating Income in excess of €8 M. Bigben Interactive will disclose a new target upon its 4th quarter sales release.
Lower oil prices and the related fall in the cost of plastic based purchases bring the Group an opportunity to improve its production costs. Excluding any exchange rate effect, the Group intends to strengthen its actions to maximise value added and thereby improve its profitability during the coming financial year.
Upcoming publication:
Annual sales 2014 / 2015: Monday 20 April 2015
Press Release after the stock market closes
About Bigben Interactive
A leading player specialized in the design and distribution of accessories for video games and cell phones, as well as audio products, Bigben Interactive has a presence in France, Benelux, Germany, Spain, Italy and Hong Kong. Buoyed by the rapid expansion of the Smartphone market and changes in the video game market, the Group, which is recognized for its capacities in terms of innovation and creation, seeks to become one of Europe's leaders in multimedia accessories.
The Bigben Interactive group has 303 employees in 6 subsidiaries. Sales published for last year (to the end of March 2014) amounted to €178M.
Contacts Bigben Interactive : Infofin@bigben.fr ; +33 (0)3 20.90.72.00 Website: http://www.bigben.fr/: CapValue (Edouard Miffre): emiffre@capvalue.fr: Company listed on Euronext Paris, compartment C Index: CAC SMALL Eligible SRD long ISIN: FR0000074072; Reuters: BIG.PA; Bloomberg: BIG FP |
http://hugin.info/143373/R/1888144/668108.pdf
The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein.
Source: BIGBEN INTERACTIVE via Globenewswire
