Landis+Gyr Announces First Half FY 2023 Financial Results

Cham, Switzerland. – October 25, 2023 – Landis+Gyr Group AG (SIX: LAND), a leading global provider of integrated energy management solutions, today announced unaudited financial results for the first half of financial year 2023 (April 1 – September 30, 2023).

• Sustained strong order intake of USD 958.1 million, up 22.5% year-over-year (YoY) in constant currency, corresponding to a book-to-bill ratio of 1.0
• Committed backlog increased 7.2% YoY to USD 3,730.5 million
• Net revenues in H1 FY 2023 rose strongly by 32.1% YoY in constant currency to USD 970.5 million, driven by backlog execution and improved component availability
• Adjusted EBITDA* more than doubled to USD 108.1 million (up 122.0% YoY), equivalent to a margin of 11.1%, driven by operating leverage and slow recovery of supply chain cost
• Net income of USD 41.2 million or USD 1.43 per share (diluted) – a 41.6% like-for-like increase versus previous year’s period (excl. Intellihub divestment gain)
• Free Cash Flow (excl. M&A) of USD 5.1 million (up USD 44.0 million YoY), restrained by higher strategic inventory investments to convert backlog
• Guidance for FY 2023 confirmed, assuming broadly unchanged global economic conditions, with Adjusted EBITDA margin expected around the upper end of the 9% to 11% range
• Near- and long-term targets to significantly reduce emissions approved by Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi)

“In the first half of financial year 2023, we were able to demonstrate our ability to deliver continued strong growth and margin expansion. The steadily improving component availability and a strong focus on backlog execution drove growth and supported our ability to serve customer demand even better in the first half of the year. Continued strong order intake shows the trust our customers have in our solutions and underlines the recession-resilient nature of our Company. As a result, we expect to deliver around the upper end of our margin guidance for the full year, assuming broadly unchanged global economic conditions,” said Werner Lieberherr, Chief Executive Officer of Landis+Gyr.

“Additionally, energy efficiency and grid resiliency are on top of mind as we are heading into winter. These factors, paired with our strategic transformation, provide a solid foundation for sustained profitable growth. The increased need for intelligence at the grid edge positions us in the sweet spot of the energy transition as we offer end-to-end solutions to our customer to manage energy better and drive the decarbonization of the grid,” Lieberherr concluded.

Order Intake and Committed Backlog

Group order intake for the first half of FY 2023 was USD 958.1 million, an increase of 22.5% in constant currency when compared to the same period in FY 2022 and corresponding to a book-to-bill ratio of 1.0. The sustained strong order intake was driven by major contract wins in the Americas and EMEA regions. Committed backlog was up by 7.2% YoY, reaching a high level of USD 3,730.5 million.

The Americas region recorded an order intake of USD 608.1 million (book-to-bill of 1.1), driven by wins in North America, and the committed backlog rose by 11.9% to USD 2,914.8 million. In the EMEA region, orders of USD 290.3 million (book-to-bill of 0.9) were booked, resulting in a 3.6% higher committed backlog of USD 727.1 million. In Asia Pacific, order intake amounted to USD 59.6 million (book-to-bill of 0.7), leading to a 48.9% lower committed backlog of USD 88.6 million, driven by the discontinuation of manufacturing activities in India and the extraordinarily strong previous year period.

Net Revenue

In the first half of FY 2023, net revenue rose by 32.1% in constant currency to USD 970.5 million from USD 728.7 million in the same period in FY 2022. The strong net revenue growth was driven by backlog execution and improved component availability.

Landis+Gyr shipped 10 million devices in the first six months of FY 2023, an increase of 38% year-over-year, also strengthening the installed base for future software revenues.

Net revenue per segment was as follows (in USD million, except where indicated):

The Americas region delivered exceptionally strong net revenue growth of 44.3% YoY in constant currency to USD 564.8 million. Growth was led by the conversion of the strong backlog in North America.

The business in the EMEA region also grew significantly, compared to the prior year period, with net revenue up 24.9% in constant currency to USD 321.6 million. Growth was driven by Switzerland, France, and the Luna business in Turkey, offsetting the softening in the United Kingdom.

Net revenue in the Asia Pacific region declined by 1.7% in constant currency to USD 84.1 million, driven by the discontinuation of manufacturing activities in India, and was partially offset by strong performance in Hong Kong.

Adjusted Gross Profit, Adjusted and Reported EBITDA

Adjusted gross profit increased by 34.3% to USD 304.9 million with the corresponding margin slightly improving to 31.4%. Main drivers for the increase were the significantly stronger revenue level and a slow recovery of elevated supply chain costs of approximately USD 9 million in H1 FY2023.

Adjusted operating expenses in H1 FY 2023 increased by USD 18.6 million or 10.4% year-over-year to USD 196.8 million. Due to investments in the strategic initiatives smart ultrasonic gas and water as well as EV charging, adjusted R&D expenses came in at USD 89.5 million (up 8.0%) and correspond to 9.2% of net revenue in the first six months of 2023. Adjusted Sales, General and Administrative (SG&A) expenses rose 12.6% to USD 107.3 million, driven primarily by ramp-up investments to support growth, and were equivalent to 11.1% of net revenue.

The Adjusted EBITDA by segment was as follows (in USD million, except where indicated):

Overall, the Adjusted EBITDA in H1 FY 2023 was USD 108.1 million, an increase of USD 59.4 million or 122.0% when compared to the same period in FY 2022. The Adjusted EBITDA margin increased by 440 basis points from 6.7% in H1 FY 2022 to 11.1% in H1 FY 2023. The strong increase in Adjusted EBITDA was mainly attributable to significantly higher volume resulting in operating leverage combined with slightly lower supply chain costs and partially offset by higher adjusted operating expenses.

In H1 FY 2023, operating income increased sixfold from USD 10.5 million in H1 FY 2022 to USD 64.2 million. Reported EBITDA in the period under review was USD 99.8 million versus USD 51.0 million in the same period in FY 2022, an increase of 95.7%.

The adjustments to bridge between reported EBITDA in the Group’s financial statements and Adjusted EBITDA were as follows (in USD million):

In H1 FY 2023, adjustments were again made in three categories. Firstly, with respect to restructuring charges, the USD 15.1 million related predominantly to a global restructuring initiative (known as Project Horizon), which was launched in August 2023. Horizon aims at streamlining the organization and optimizing the indirect labor cost structure with a targeted workforce reduction of approximately 200 positions. Secondly, the warranty normalization adjustments of USD (4.8) million represent the amount of warranty provisions made relative to the average actual warranty utilization for the last three years. This means warranty provisions in H1 FY 2023 were again below historical levels. Thirdly, the timing difference on FX derivatives adjustment was USD (1.9) million in H1 FY 2023, which relates to mark to market differences on hedges.

Net Income and Earnings per Share (EPS)

Net income attributable to Landis+Gyr Group shareholders for H1 FY 2023 was USD 41.2 million or USD 1.43 per share (diluted EPS). In the prior year period, net income of USD 186.5 million included a substantial gain from the divestment of the minority stake in Intellihub of USD 160.6 million. Like-for-like EPS excluding the one-off gain in H1 FY 2022 was USD 1.01 and the corresponding EPS increase in H1 FY 2023 was 41.6%.

Cash Flow and Net Debt

Free Cash Flow (excl. M&A) was USD 5.1 million, an increase of USD 44.0 million, when compared to USD (38.9) million in H1 FY 2022. The Free Cash Flow was negatively impacted by higher operating working capital, driven by continued strategic inventory investments. Cash provided by operating activities was USD 24.0 million in H1 FY 2023 compared to USD (82.9) million in the previous year period. In the period under review, capital expenditure (PP&E) was USD 18.7 million, an increase of 110.1% versus H1 FY 2022, which was mainly driven by new product introduction and upgrading manufacturing facilities.

As of September 30, 2023, the ratio of net debt to trailing twelve months Adjusted EBITDA was 0.67 times, with net debt of USD 134.2 million after the dividend payment in June 2023.

Outlook for FY 2023

Landis+Gyr reconfirms its outlook for FY 2023, provided at the Capital Markets Day in January 2023 and confirmed in May 2023, assuming broadly unchanged global economic conditions. As already communicated, Landis+Gyr expects a continuation of the strong net revenue trend in FY 2023, resulting in a low double-digit growth compared to FY 2022. With an anticipated further improvement of the supply chain cost situation, Landis+Gyr now expects the Adjusted EBITDA margin to come in around the upper end of the initially guided range of between 9% and 11% of net revenue. Free Cash Flow (excl. M&A) is confirmed to be between USD 60 million to USD 90 million as the elevated inventory situation is expected to partially normalize in H2 but will remain above historical averages to fulfill customer orders of large contracts won.

Update on Sustainability Efforts

The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has assessed Landis+Gyr’s near- and long-term emission reduction targets against their rigorous criteria and has recently approved them. As a Company committed to decarbonizing the grid, Landis+Gyr’s targets are in line with the most ambitious pathway (1.5°C), as defined by the Paris Climate Accord. Landis+Gyr has committed to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions across the value chain by 2050. Furthermore, the Company has committed to reduce scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 42% until 2030 (versus 2021 base year) and to reduce scope 3 emissions also by 42% until 2030.

Landis+Gyr is now part of a group of over 3,000 leading companies with approved targets who are taking action to combat climate change and move towards a greener, more sustainable future. As a leader in the decarbonization efforts, Landis+Gyr is part of the first group of companies to receive approval for net-zero targets.

In 2022, Landis+Gyr was able to help avoid more than 9.5 million tons of CO₂ through its large installed smart metering base and strives to further increase its positive impact on the environment through consistently high investments in innovative technologies and solutions.

Documents

The H1 FY 2023 earnings presentation, which forms part of this ad hoc announcement, as well as the Half Year Report 2023 are available on the Company’s website at www.landisgyr.com/investors/results-center/

Investor Webcast and Telephone Conference

The management of Landis+Gyr will host an investor/analyst call and webcast to discuss the Company’s results.

Please dial in 10 minutes before the start of the presentation and ask for “Landis+Gyrʼs first half year results 2023”.

Media Contact

Eva Borowski

SVP Investor Relations & Corporate Communications

Phone +41 76 803 4573
Eva.Borowski@landisgyr.com

Investor Contact

Christian Waelti

Head of Investor Relations
Phone +41 41 935 6331

Christian.Waelti@landisgyr.com

Key Dates