YA Holding AB (publ) publishes year-end report for the full year 2023

YA Holding AB (publ) (“YA” or “YA Holding”) publishes a year-end statement for the period 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023.

Fourth quarter (October - December) 2023

• Net sales decreased by 25.9% to 182.5 mnkr (246.2).
• EBIT for the quarter amounted to -35.8 mnkr (-89.8).
• EBIT excluding non-recurring items amounted to -8.3 mnkr (-25.8).
• Total cash flow for the quarter was 31.5 (-1.8).
• The average number of participants and students was 9 045 (9 960).
• The share of participants employed three months after completing employment training (AUB) or vocational secondary education (VUX) was 50% (59%).

Full year (January - December) 2023

• Net sales decreased by 6.9% to 821.3 mnkr (882.2).
• EBIT for the period amounted to -188.4 mnkr (-157.8).
• EBIT excluding non-recurring items amounted to -44.7 mnkr (-93.8).
• Total cash flow for the period was 34.5 (-78.3).
• The average number of participants and students was 9 417 (10 076).
• The share of participants employed three months after completing employment training (AUB) or vocational secondary education (VUX) was 61% (63%).

Significant events during and after the quarter

An extraordinary general meeting was held on 26 September 2023 in YA Holding AB’s parent company YA Invest AB that resolved to issue a call option regarding a potential transfer of all shares in YA Holding without compensation. The exercise of the option requires that the holders of YA Holding’s outstanding senior secured sustainability-linked corporate bonds with ISIN SE0016831150 (the Bond Loan) approve the transfer of the shares in YA Holding through a separate written procedure. YA Invest has also obtained a put option entailing a right to sell all its shares in YA Holding to the holders of the call option, or a purchaser directed by them, from 1 April 2024 if the call option has not been exercised by 31 March 2024 at the latest. The option concerns the shares in YA Holding and does not directly affect YA Holding’s subsidiaries. For more information, please refer to the Group’s separate press release on this topic published on 26 September 2023.

On 2 October 2023, YA Holding received the bondholders’ approval for certain changes to the terms and conditions of its existing Bond Loan. The changes to the terms and conditions entered into force on that same day, in connection with the expiry of the voting period. The changes to the terms and conditions are set out in the notice to the written procedure which is available on YA Holding’s  website. The revised terms and conditions include an interest-free period until 17 September 2024.

On 20 November 2023, YA Holding entered into a debt financing agreement and subsequently made a drawdown of the nominal amount of 34 mnkr (approximately 32.3 mnkr in cash after a so-called Original Issue Discount) provided by certain holders of YA Holding’s Bond Loan, the proceeds of which will mainly be used to finance the corporate restructuring in YA Holding’s subsidiary YrkesAkademin AB.   

On 1 December 2023, YrkesAkademin AB submitted a request to Falu district Court regarding an extension of the ongoing corporate restructuring. On 12 December 2023, Falu District Court approved YrkesAkademin AB’s request for an extension of the corporate restructuring with an additional three (3) months up to and including 4 March 2024. The non-recurring items of 144 mnkr in 2023, of which 28 mnkr in the fourth quarter, arise from the corporate restructuring, impairment losses, and revaluation of a contingent liability (i.e. earn-out payment Arcus Utbildning & Jobbförmedling AB). For more details, please refer to the section Financial performance.

On 31 December 2023, further analysis of the potential effects as a result of the corporate restructuring in YrkesAkademin AB was carried out in YA Holding, and the need for possible impairments of the value of YA Holding’s holdings in its subsidiaries. The result of the impairments of values in the subsidiaries still showed that YA Holding's equity was less than half of the registered share capital in line with the previously prepared balance sheet for liquidation purposes which was prepared as of 30 September 2023. YA Holding intends to and expects to recover the equity deficit through and in connection with the finalization of the corporate restructuring in YrkesAkademin AB.

On 22 January 2024, the Swedish Public Employment Service announced that they intend to sign agreements with a subsidiary of YA Holding concerning 8 of a total of 22 agreements of the tenders for professional bus and truck driver training. Following the announcement on 22 January 2024, the Swedish Public Employment Service thereafter announced that YA Holding won one additional agreement, resulting in a total of 9 agreements. The value of the total contracts won, in terms of revenue, is estimated to be approximately SEK 90-100 million annually for the Group based on YA Holding’s estimation of participant levels, and thus slightly higher than announced through a separate press release by YA Holding on 22 January 2024. The contract period is two years with the possibility of an extension of another one plus one year. The agreements have been signed and the planned first delivery date for the agreements is preliminary 1 April 2024.

YA Holding and YrkesAkademin AB is in the process of preparing a refinancing arrangement plan for YA Holding and the group as well as a restructuring plan in YrkesAkademin AB. Once this work is completed, YA Holding will announce information in relation to this through a separate press release.

Sender
Martin Modig, CEO YA Holding AB (publ)

For press questions, please contact:
Alice Hedin, acting press secretary
Phone: +46 (0) 70 878 91 05
E-mail: alice.hedin@ya.se