NHST : 2021 Q4 EN

QUARTERLY REPORT FOR

FOURTH QUARTER 2021

NHST GROUP'S DEVELOPMENT IN THE FOURTH QUARTER OF 2021

• 4 per cent increase in user market revenues in the media businesses
• 15.6 per cent increase in advertising market in the fourth quarter
• The media businesses and the SaaS businesses are both investing in product and organizational development
• Group revenues increased by 2.7 per cent compared to quarter four, 2020
• Group EBITDA was NOK 8.9 million for the fourth quarter and NOK 66.5 million for the full year
• New organization structure implemented, strengthening business development across publications and enabling faster growth.
• NHST Media Group AS was renamed to NHST Holding AS

During the fourth quarter 2021, the Group implemented a new legal structure as well as a new organizational structure for the media business. The purpose of the changes is to strengthen the business development across the media entities and position the group for profitable growth.

Following the changes, the Group reports its business in two business segments, Media and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS).

The consolidated Group achieved net sales of NOK 289.5 million in the fourth quarter, an increase of 2.7 percent from the fourth quarter 2020.

For 2021 as a whole, consolidated revenues were NOK 1 084.9 million compared to NOK 1 088.8 million for 2020. Adjusted for the sale of Morgenbladet as of June 30, 2020, total revenues for the year show a growth of NOK 30.9 million equal to 2.9 per cent.

Group EBITDA in the fourth quarter was NOK 8.9 million, compared to NOK 22.0 million in the fourth quarter 2020. The reduction was due to cost increases in parts of the media organization as well as lower recognized revenues in the SaaS businesses.

For the year, Group EBITDA ended at NOK 66.5 million versus NOK 68.4 million last year. EBITDA before non-recurring items was NOK 53,0 million versus NOK 74,0 million in 2020. The reduction was mainly due to lower recognized revenues in the SaaS businesses, as a result of a weak market situation for sales of new subscriptions during 2020. New sales of subscriptions in the SaaS business were however improving towards the end of the year.

The Group` s liquidity at the end of quarter four was strong with bank balances amounting to NOK 293,2 million.

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KEY FIGURES

Numbers in NOK million	Q4 2021	Q4 2020	YTD 2021	YTD 2020
User revenues	206.9	206.4	806.9	848.6
Advertising revenues	72.7	62.9	227.5	193.5
Other revenues	9.8	12.6	50.4	46.7
Total revenues	289.5	281.9	1084.9	1088.8
Operating expenses	280.6	259.9	1018.4	1020.4
EBITDA before non-recurring items	8.9	25.4	53.0	74.0
EBITDA	8.9	22.0	66.5	68.4
Depreciation	16.6	13.6	61.9	61.0
Amortisation	0	0	0	80.6
Operating result	-7.7	8.4	4.6	-73.2
CAPEX	15.4	14.3	47.9	42.5
EBITDA less CAPEX	-6.5	7.7	18.6	26.0

Figure 1: Percentage of total revenues accumulated for Q4 2021

Figure 2: Percentage of total revenues by quarter

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MEDIA

The media segment consists of the publications Dagens Næringliv, TradeWinds, Upstream, Recharge, Europower, Intrafish.no, Intrafish.com and Fiskeribladet, as well as shared functions supporting these publications.

The market development for the publications was generally positive in the fourth quarter. The publications continued to deliver quality journalism to their chosen target groups. User market revenues increased by 4.0 per cent from the fourth quarter 2020, driven by a solid growth in digital subscription across all publications. Total user market revenues were NOK 150.9 million in the fourth quarter (NOK 145.1 million).

Advertising revenues improved sharply through the year and were NOK 72,7 million in the fourth quarter, an increase of 15.6 per cent from one year ago. Revenues from conferences and other events were however still affected negatively by restrictions related to the Covid-19 pandemic and the loss of revenues from physical events was only partly compensated by revenues from digital events.

Operating expenses in the fourth quarter were NOK 221.5 million, an increase of 11.4 per cent from 2020. The increase was mainly due to recruitments in support of editorial initiatives as well as the effect of one-time cost measure implemented in 2020 related to the pandemic.

EBITDA for the media business was NOK 9.6 million in the fourth quarter, a reduction from NOK 18,5 million in the fourth quarter 2020.

The entities in the segment continue to invest in product improvements and improved support systems. Investments in the media business were NOK 6.1 million in the fourth quarter and NOK 19.4 million for the full year, an increase of 53.9 per cent from 2020.

In the fourth quarter, Dagens Næringsliv acquired a further 6 per cent ownership interest in the associated entity Norkon Computing Systems (Norkon). Dagens Næringsliv`s ownership interest at year end was 29,6 per cent. Norkon is building and selling systems for publication of financial market information and related news.

NOK million	Q4 2020	Q1 2021	Q2 2021	Q3 2021	Q4 2021	YTD 2020	YTD 2021
User revenues	145.1	145.7	140.2	151.1	150.9	614.5	587.8
Advertising revenues	62.9	47.1	58.5	49.2	72.7	194.5	227.5
Other revenues	9.3	6.1	19.6	8.2	7.5	33.9	41.3
Total revenues	217.3	198.8	218.3	208.5	231.1	842.9	856.7
Operating expenses	198.8	197.5	175.4	190.2	221.5	797.8	784.6
EBITDA	18.5	1.3	42.9	18.3	9.6	45.2	72.1
CAPEX	7.6	4.1	4.8	4.4	6.1	12.6	19.4
EBITDA less CAPEX	10.9	-2.8	38.1	13.9	3.5	32.6	52.7

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SOFTWARE-AS-A-SERVICE

The business area Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) includes the companies Mynewsdesk and Mention Solutions ("Mention"). Mynewsdesk, headquartered in Stockholm, is offering its customers a PR and communication platform with associated services. The company's main markets are the Nordic area and the DACH area (Germany, Austria, Switzerland). Mention is offering services within media surveillance, mainly focusing on social media. Mention has its head office in Paris, and has a global market focus.

The two entities in the SaaS business segment are both in an investment phase. The companies give priority to further improving product properties, strengthening the IT infrastructure and building the organizations.

Total revenues for the segment were NOK 58.5 million in the quarter, a reduction of 9.5 per cent from the year before. The reduction was mainly due to the long-term effects of the covid-19 pandemic, which resulted in low activity in new subscription sales during most of 2020. This led to lower revenues in 2021 as revenues are recognized in the accounts over the subscription period which is typically 6-12 months ahead. The businesses saw an improvement in the underlying new sales towards the end of the year, compared to the year before.

Operating expenses, at NOK 58.0 million, were slightly lower in the fourth quarter 2021 than the year before. Manning reductions and other cost savings implemented in 2020 continued to have an impact through 2021.

EBITDA for the fourth quarter was NOK 0.5 million (2020 NOK 4.5 million). For the full year EBITDA was negative 3,7 million (2020 NOK 21.1 million).

Investments in the business area were NOK 9.3 million in the fourth quarter and NOK 28.5 million for the full year (2020 NOK 29.9 million).

NOK million	Q4 2020	Q1 2021	Q2 2021	Q3 2021	Q4 2021	YTD 2020	YTD 2021
Subscription revenues	61.3	54.6	54.5	54.4	56.2	243.8	219.7
Other revenues	3.3	2.7	2.0	2.1	2.3	10.6	9.1
Total revenues	64.6	57.2	56.5	56.5	58.5	254.4	228.7
Operating expenses	60.1	60.2	60.0	54.2	58.0	233.3	232.4
EBITDA	4.5	-3.0	-3.5	2.3	0.5	21.1	-3.7
CAPEX	6.7	6.7	7.6	4.9	9.3	29.9	28.5
EBITDA less CAPEX	-2.2	-9.7	-11.1	-2.6	-8.8	-8.8	-32.2

Oslo, 9 February 2022

The Board of Directors of NHST Holding AS

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