REG - Mobico Group PLC - Update on timing of FY 2023 results

MobicoAnnouncement

20/02/2024 07:00

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
http://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20240220:nRST6802Da&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 6802D  Mobico Group PLC  20 February 2024

 

20 February 2024

 

MOBICO GROUP PLC

 

Update on timing of FY 2023 results

FY 2023 Adjusted(1) EBIT expected to be in line with guidance

 

Mobico Group PLC ("Mobico" or "the Group") today announces a delay to the
publication of its audited financial results for the year ended 31 December
2023 ("FY 2023").

 

Whilst the audit of the Group's FY 2023 results is well progressed, the Group
has recently identified that accounting judgements made relating to the German
Rail business(2), including in relation to the financial year ended 31
December 2022, should be subject to further review. The delay in publication
of financial results will allow management to conclude its review and allow
the Group's auditor, Deloitte, the requisite amount of time to complete its
audit.

 

The Board continues to expect Adjusted(1) EBIT for FY 2023 to be within the
range of £175m-£185m, as provided in the Q3 trading update on 12 October
2023. Covenant gearing is anticipated to be broadly in line with the half-year
position and with significant headroom.

 

ALSA has delivered another strong performance in FY 2023, and the Group's UK
and North American businesses have performed in line with expectations. The
German Rail business has been impacted by industry-wide driver shortages,
energy price volatility and lower energy cost recovery than previously
anticipated.  As a result, and subject to the conclusion of the review
mentioned above, the Group currently expects the onerous contract provision as
at 31 December 2023 to increase by between £40m - £70m which will be
utilised over the remaining life of the contract between 2024 and 2033.

 

As a result of the additional review the Group's audited financial results for
FY2023, which were originally planned to be published on 29 February 2024, are
now expected to be published before the end of March 2024.  A new date for
publication will be confirmed in due course.

 

Notes:

1.  To supplement IFRS reporting, the Group presents its results (including
EBIT and EBITDA) on an adjusted basis to show the performance of the business
before adjusting items. These principally comprise intangible amortisation for
acquired businesses, re-measurement of historic onerous contract provisions
and impairments, settlement of the WeDriveU Put Liability, voluntary repayment
of UK CJRS grant income ('furlough') and Group wide restructuring and other
costs. In addition to performance measures directly observable in the Group
financial statements (IFRS measures), alternative financial measures are
presented that are used internally by management as key measures to assess
performance. For the year ended 31 December 2023, the Group has changed this
terminology from 'underlying' to 'adjusted' to make clearer what this
performance measure represents. There are no changes to the definition of what
is included in these items.

 

2. The German Rail business is expected to represent less than 6% of FY 2023
Group Adjusted(1) EBIT

 

All numbers included in this announcement are subject to completion of the
audit.

 

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by Mobico to
constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulation
(EU) No.596/2014 as it forms part of domestic law of the United Kingdom by
virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. By the publication of this
announcement via a Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is
now considered to be in the public domain.

The person responsible for arranging for the release of this announcement on
behalf of Mobico is Simon Callander, General Counsel and Company Secretary.

 

 

Enquiries

Mobico Group PLC

 James Stamp, Chief Financial Officer    0121 803 8820
 John Dean, Investor Relations Director

Headland

 Stephen Malthouse  07734 956201
 Matt Denham        07551 825496

 

About Mobico and German Rail

Mobico is a leading, international shared mobility provider with bus, coach
and rail services in the UK, North America, continental Europe, North Africa
and the Middle East.  Through its German Rail business it operates all three
of the RheinRuhr Express ("RRX") lines and the Rhein-Munster Express ('RME')
line under long-term contracts in the German federal state of North
Rhine-Westphalia.  The accounting for two of the RRX contracts (Lots 2 and 3)
and the RME contract involve significant management judgments covering key
areas including expected long term revenue and passenger growth assumptions,
energy price performance and cost development over the remaining contract life
and the extent to which those may be offset by contractual protection
mechanisms in place.  Those judgments have to be regularly reassessed and
retested.  The RRX contracts for Lots 2 and 3 are also the subject of onerous
contract provision on the Balance Sheet reflecting management's estimate of
the expected contract life losses which has to be re-valued at every half-year
and full year.

 

Notes

Legal Entity Identifier: 213800A8IQEMY8PA5X34

Classification: 2.2 for the purposes of DTR 6 Annex 1

 

 

Forward looking statements and other important information

This document contains forward-looking statements with respect to the
financial condition, results and business of Mobico Group PLC. By their
nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty and there may
be subsequent variations to estimates. Mobico's actual future results may
differ materially from the results expressed or implied in these
forward-looking statements.  Unless otherwise required by applicable law,
regulation or accounting standard, Mobico does not undertake to update or
revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future developments or otherwise. Forward-looking statements can be made in
writing but also may be made verbally by members of the management of the
Group (including without limitation, during management presentations to
financial analysts) in connection with this document.

 

 

 

 

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
 or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
.   END  MSCQKCBNCBKDKBD