Results of Tele Columbus AG for the first half of 2024
- EUR 222.6 million revenue in the first half of 2024 (+0.6% YoY)
- Reported EBITDA -22.6% to EUR 67.1 million in the first half of 2024 burdened by one-off expenses
- Normalised EBITDA +0.2% to EUR 93.0 million in the first half of 2024
- Once again, strong IP new customer growth in the second quarter
(+54.1% YoY)
Berlin, 28 August 2024. Tele Columbus AG (“Tele Columbus”, “the Company” or “the Group”), one of Germany’s leading fiber network operators, today published its results for the second quarter and thus for the first half of the 2024 financial year.
In the first half of 2024, Tele Columbus generated revenue of EUR 222.6 million
(+0.6% YoY). New customer growth in the IP segment increased again in the second quarter with a growth of 54.1% YoY compared to 27.4% YoY in the first quarter of 2024. Around 50% of new IP customers opted for bandwidths of 500 Mbps or faster in the second quarter, confirming the growing demand for high internet speeds.
The customer base in the TV sector decreased to 1.1 million (-41.1% YoY) in the second quarter due to the elimination of cable TV fees from ancillary rental costs, which has been legally applicable since 1 July 2024. The share of individual user contracts included in this figure increased by 98k to a total of 733k in the second quarter. In the third quarter of 2024, around 590k households will be migrated from collective to individual collection, which the company expects to result in a further increase in individual user contracts. The pay-TV segment remained stable year-on-year with -4k customers.
At EUR 222.6 million, Tele Columbus’ revenue development remained at the same level in a half-year comparison to 2023 (+0.6% YoY), which is primarily due to the transition from bulk to individual TV. Compared to the previous quarter, there was a slight decline in revenue of -1.7%. The decline in revenue in the TV business in the first half of 2024 by EUR 10.4 million to EUR 84.8 million (-11.0% YoY) was more than offset by an increase in revenue of EUR 13.2 million in the Internet and Telephony segment during the same period.
Reported EBITDA decreased from EUR 86.8 million in the first half of 2023 to EUR 67.1 million (-22.7%) due to the ongoing transformation activities within the Group, the completed A&E financing process and the transition from bulk to individual TV. Due to the continued stable total revenue, normalised EBITDA increased slightly by +0.2% from EUR 92.8 million in the first half of 2023 to EUR 93.0 million in the first half of 2024.
Tele Columbus invested EUR 63.7 million, 14.2% more than in the second quarter of 2023. The largest share of investments were allocated to network expansion (31.0%).
Due to a lower initial conversion ratio in the bulk migration campaigns and stricter capital allocation to sales channels, the sales expectation for the year as a whole has been reduced. In addition, the separation of the Group in a network and a service company is progressing faster, resulting in higher one-off expenses. As a result, the forecast for the full year 2024 has been adjusted. Management anticipates a low single-digit percentage year-on-year decline in revenues, a slight year-on-year increase in EBITDA and a slightly better development of the liquidity position than originally planned (primarily due to optimisation of net working capital and capital allocation/investments).
About Tele Columbus AG
Tele Columbus AG is one of the leading fiber-optic network operators in Germany with a reach of more than three million households. Under the PΫUR brand, the company offers high-speed Internet including telephone as well as more than 200 TV programs on a digital entertainment platform that combines classic television with video entertainment on demand. On the basis of open networks, the Tele Columbus Group implements customized cooperation models together with the housing industry and municipalities for high-performance supply with gigabit bandwidths via optical fiber to the home (FTTH). Carrier services and business solutions are provided for business customers under the PŸUR Business brand based on the company’s own fiber-optic network and data centers. The subsidiary RFC primarily provides service, maintenance and installation in network levels 2, 3 and 4 throughout Germany. The regional company MDCC provides Magdeburg with multimedia services for business and residential customers. The entire infrastructure of the Tele Columbus Group is powered by renewable energy. Tele Columbus AG has its headquarters in Berlin and offices in Leipzig, Unterföhring/Munich, Hamburg, Ratingen and Chemnitz.
