Printing and communications giant IVE welcomed a 30 per cent increase in its full year revenue for 2017, coming in at $496.9m, with its EBITDA jumping 23 per cent to $55.2m, and says next year’s EBITDA will rise by a similar percentage, to come in at $70-$75m.
IVE says EBITDA of 11.1 per cent is strong on any global comparison.
IVE says its full year results reflects a strong year on year performance and the company’s ongoing focus on diversification and growth. The 30 per cent increase in revenue compared to the prior corresponding period (pcp) reflects the impact of the Franklin WEB and AIW Printing acquisitions which came in half way through the year, as well as increased revenue from new customer wins and the existing customer base through an expanded service offering.
Since acquiring Franklin WEB and AIW Printing, IVE has secured $70m in incremental annual contracted revenue, with significant new contracts from Coles and Pacific Magazines – previously printed by PMP – and the extension and expansion of the NARTA contract. The EBITDA of $55.2m represents an increase of $10.3m over pcp, achieved via a combination of revenue growth and what IVE says is continued highly efficient operations.
[Related: IVE takes Pac Mags from PMP]
IVE has just paid $19.6m for communications company SEMA, funded from a $55.6m capital raising announced today, which also includes a provision of some $22m for a second 80pp heatset press at the new Franklin WEB site in NSW. The company expects Franklin WEB NSW to be fully operational by October, while AIW will be fully closed in December. IVE says restructuring costs next year will only be between $2.5m-$3.5m. Completion date for the SEMA acquisition is September 6, IVE says it is expected to derive in excess $5m per annum in synergies.
Geoff Selig, Executive Chairman, IVE says, “The SEMA acquisition consolidates our position as one of Australia’s leading vertically integrated marketing communications business. It also significantly strengthens the strategic expansion through our Kalido division into data analytics, customer insights and marketing automation.”
IVE says the purchase of a second 80pp heatset press and ancillary equipment for Franklin WEB (NSW) provides additional capacity to service incremental revenue. It also finalises the rebalancing of large format web offset (LFWO) capacity from Victoria to NSW to better service national retailers and publishers.
For its outlook, IVE provides the full year for 2018 with an EBITDA guidance of between $70m-75m (before restructuring costs) excluding the impact of the SEMA acquisition and the second Sydney LFWO press. This guidance is largely attributed to expected earnings uplift from the combination of scale attained through acquisitions, the increased investment in the asset base following the establishment of the greenfields Franklin WEB operation in NSW, and ongoing disciplined cost management.
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