Acando Year-end report 2018

Fourth quarter October 1–December 31, 2018

• Net sales totaled SEK 797 m (693)
• Operating profit amounted to SEK 83 m (87)
• Operating margin was 10.4% (12.5)
• Profit after tax was SEK 63 m (67)
• Earnings per share were SEK 0.60 (0.64)
   

Accumulated, January 1–December 31, 2018

• Net sales totaled SEK 2,826 m (2,444)
• Operating profit amounted to SEK 264 m (243)
• Profit before non-recurring items SEK 274 m, corresponding to a margin of 9.7%
• Operating margin 9.4% (10.0)
• Profit after tax was SEK 209 m (180)
• Earnings per share were SEK 2.01 (1.73)
• Cash and cash equivalents totaled SEK 56 m (90)
• The Board intends to propose that the AGM resolve to distribute a dividend of SEK 1.45 (1.40) per share, corresponding to a total of about SEK 151 m (145).

Statement by Carl-Magnus Månsson, CEO

The full-year 2018 was another record year for Acando. We continue to grow and sales now amount to SEK 2,826 m for the full year, representing growth of 16 percent. Profits are also rising and we posted a new record for operating profit for a full fiscal year of SEK 274 m, excluding non-recurring items. This represents profit growth of 13 percent, even though we didn’t post as high a profit margin as last year in the seasonally weak fourth quarter. Earnings per share are higher than ever, and we will propose that the AGM resolve to distribute a record dividend to our shareholders of SEK 151 m. At the end of the year, we were 2,120 employees, another record high at the end of the year. In parallel, we have increased our relevance by developing our offering in the most transformative customer segments and by deepening our skills through focused acquisitions when opportunities were presented. And now that Anywhere.24 in Germany has been fully integrated, we are well-placed for continued expansion by growing our position in Microsoft Dynamics across country borders. Moreover, our ambition of creating an innovation-driven design studio under the itch brand has also been established and we envisage considerable potential in the creation of completely new possibilities in terms of a well-defined offering linked to accelerated innovation and as a part of the full Acando offering. In our Norwegian operations, we built an offering in 2018 extending from advanced embedded technology, IoT and design to advanced data-driven analysis, which makes us unique now that we have integrated Inventas in our offer structure.

We are continually strengthening our position and our compiled offering is greeted by a healthy market where the demand for technologies, innovation and efficiency increasingly demands a sustainability perspective in terms of the climate and society. During the year, we complemented our financial follow-up with qualitative data regarding how we can better generate positive effects in our surroundings. Actions include our support in developing processes and solutions for moving air freight to sea freight for a global pharmaceutical company, thereby creating the preconditions for significantly lowering emissions, creating opportunities to increase transparency and efficiency in the processing of applications for citizenship in a European country through modern digital interaction channels and streamlining healthcare systems and enhanced patient experiences with AI-based planning solutions. Our unique ability to create value together with our customers stems from our capacity to combine all the possibilities provided by technology together with our approach toward users, customers and organizations. The created value is not only commercial and financial — it also encompasses values that contribute to a better society and a more sustainable world.

Our greatest challenge, one which has also dominated the quarter and the full year, is being able to continue to attract the best talents in a wide span of skills. Demand exceeds supply and competition for employees is more apparent than ever. We are accelerating our talent programs and increasing our direct recruitment from universities and colleges while offering the most stimulating assignments in the most exciting areas. We continue to evolve, and our customers and employees are equally important components in our evolution. In this way, we will continue to create “A more capable world.”

This report comprises information that Acando AB (publ) is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation and the Securities Market Act. This information was submitted through the agency of the contacts for publication on February 8, 2019 at 08:00 a.m. (CET).

For further information, please contact:
Carl-Magnus Månsson, President and CEO, +46 (0)8 699 70 00
Anneli Lindblom, CFO, +46 (0)8 699 70 00

Acando is a consulting company that leverages an equal balance of specialist technical expertise and human behavioral insight to innovate, streamline and mobilize organizations for sustainable change. The Group has approximately 2,100 employees allocated over five countries. Acando had sales of more than SEK 2.8 billion in 2018 and is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm.