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EQS-News: CEWE Stiftung & Co. KGaA / Key word(s): Quarterly / Interim Statement/Quarter Results
Strong start to the year: CEWE with turnover and earnings growth in Q1
2024-05-15 / 07:00 CET/CEST
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Strong start to the year: CEWE with turnover and earnings growth in Q1
. Strong first quarter confirms annual forecast for 2024
. Group turnover increases by 6.6% to EUR 165.7 million, EBIT rises to EUR 8.1 million
. Innovative: CEWE Group recognized with three TIPA World Awards
. CEWE is top dividend increaser: 2nd place out of 611 German listed companies
Oldenburg, May 15, 2024 - CEWE Stiftung & Co. KGaA (SDAX, ISIN: DE 0005403901) has made a good start to the 2024
financial year. Group turnover increased by +6.6% to 165.7 million euros in the first quarter of 2024, setting a new
high for a first quarter (Q1 2023: 155.3 million euros). At the same time, Group EBIT improved by EUR 2.9 million to
EUR 8.1 million (Q1 2023: EUR 5.2 million). All business segments contributed to this: The earnings momentum is largely
driven by the core business segment Photofinishing with an EBIT increase of 2.4 million euros, Commercial Online-Print
improved its EBIT by 0.4 million euros and Retail was also able to improve its earnings contribution by 0.1 million
euros. "The strong first quarter in terms of turnover and earnings is an impressive team effort by all CEWE employees
and a very successful start to the year, which confirms the trend of a continuously stronger first quarter and also
reinforces our planning for 2024. We are particularly pleased that the innovative strength of the CEWE Group has once
again been recognized and honoured by the international expert jury of the 'Technical Image Press Association' with
three TIPA World Awards," emphasized Yvonne Rostock, Chairwoman of the Board of Management of CEWE Stiftung & Co. KGaA.
With the strong development of the first quarter, the company is clearly on course to achieve its annual targets:
CEWE's management is forecasting Group turnover of up to 820 million euros and Group EBIT of up to 87 million euros for
2024. With the 15th consecutive dividend increase, CEWE recently rose to second place - among all 611 German listed
companies surveyed that have continuously increased their dividends (measured by the duration of dividend increases in
years).
Photofinishing: Strong Q1 results and three TIPA World Awards
In the first quarter of 2024, photofinishing turnover once again rose significantly by +9.1% to 137.6 million euros (Q1
2023: 126.1 million euros), while photofinishing EBIT recorded an increase of 2.4 million euros and reached 7.5 million
euros (Q1 2023: 5.2 million euros). Outstandingly innovative: the CEWE Group wins three TIPA World Awards at the
beginning of the year, once again documenting the company's innovative strength. The 'Best Photo Service' award went to
the free-form stickers, which can be created, cut and picked directly at the CEWE photo station, the Pixum app as 'Best
Consumer Photo Print App' and WhiteWall as 'Best Photo Lab' for ultraHD sharpening of black-and-white prints. The
Technical Image Press Association's annual award recognizes innovative excellence in the photographic industry.
Commercial Online-Print further increases profitability
The Commercial Online Print (COP) business segment continues to benefit from the cost efficiency achieved in production
at SAXOPRINT and the resulting "best price guarantee" for its customers: Despite a slight decline in turnover, COP
managed to improve EBIT by EUR 0.4 million to EUR 0.8 million (Q1 2023: EUR 0.4 million) on the basis of the
continuously optimized cost structure. The business segment held its own against the competition and recorded a decline
in turnover of 4.9% to EUR 21.4 million in the first quarter (Q1 2023: EUR 22.6 million) in what is currently a
slightly declining market overall.
CEWE retail continues to be well positioned
Hardware retail achieved a turnover of 6.6 million euros in Q1, only slightly below that of the same quarter of the
previous year (Q1 2023: 6.7 million euros). CEWE is systematically avoiding lower-margin retail business in the area of
photo hardware (cameras and accessories) and continues to focus on business with Photofinishing products (reported in
the Photofinishing segment). The business segment even improved EBIT slightly to -0.1 million euros in the typically
seasonally weak first quarter (Q1 2023: -0.2 million euros).
Traditionally solid equity ratio reaches 66.6%, ROCE rises to 19.2
At a very solid 66.6%, the equity ratio is slightly below the previous year's level (31.03.2023: 67.1%), mainly due to
the share buyback. At the same time, the return on capital employed (ROCE) developed positively, rising from 18.0% in
the same quarter of the previous year to a very respectable 19.2% as at March 31, 2024: CEWE is creating sustainable
value.
Outlook 2024 confirmed with Q1 results
The CEWE management sees the results of the first quarter as confirmation of the targets set and confirms the outlook
for 2024: Group turnover is expected to reach a value in the range of 770 to 820 million euros in 2024, while Group
EBIT is expected to be in the corridor of 77 to 87 million euros in 2024. The CEWE management targets are based on
values in the upper half of the ranges; the lower end of the corridors solely reflects exogenous uncertainties that
cannot be influenced by the company, such as a worsening inflation-related increase in prices. CEWE itself does not
currently see any effects of inflation on its own business: photo products in particular have a very high emotional
value for many people and are increasingly in demand, largely independently of the overall economic development.
CEWE is a top dividend increaser: 15th dividend increase in a row
Based on the results for the 2023 financial year, the Management Board and Supervisory Board have proposed to the
Annual General Meeting that the dividend be increased to EUR 2.60 per dividend-bearing share (dividend for the 2022
financial year: EUR 2.45). Subject to shareholder approval at the Annual General Meeting to be held on June 5, 2024,
the proposed dividend of EUR 2.60 per share (based on the 2023 year-end share price of EUR 101.20) corresponds to a
dividend yield of 2.6%. This is the fifteenth consecutive dividend increase and also the highest dividend in the
company's history. According to the recently published 'Dividend Study Germany 2024' by Dividenden Adel, isf Institut
and Deutsche Schutzvereinigung für Wertpapierbesitz DSW, CEWE ranks second among all 611 German listed companies
surveyed that have continuously increased their dividends.

Overview Results Q1 2024
CEWE Business Segments Unit Q1 2023 Q1 2024 % abs.
(1) Photofinishing

Photos                              m. photos    516     519   +0.5%   +3 
CEWE PHOTOBUCH                      ths. units  1,256   1,237  -1.5%   -19 
Turnover                              EUR m.    126.1   137.6  +9.1%  +11.5 
EBIT                                  EUR m.     5.2     7.5   +45.9% +2.4 
Purchase price allocation effects   EUR m.    -0.8    -0.8    ---    --- 
EBIT before special effects           EUR m.     6.0     8.3   +38.4% +2.3 

(2) Retail

Turnover                              EUR m.     6.7     6.6   -1.5%  -0.1 
EBIT                                  EUR m.    -0.2    -0.1   +40.7% +0.1 

(3) Commercial Online-Print

Turnover                              EUR m.    22.6    21.4   -4.9%  -1.1 
EBIT                                  EUR m.     0.4     0.8   +94.5% +0.4 
Purchase price allocation effects   EUR m.    -0.03   -0.03   ---    --- 
EBIT before special effects           EUR m.     0.5     0.9   +89.2% +0.4 

(4) Other (without futalis)

Turnover                              EUR m.     0.0     0.0    ---    --- 
EBIT                                  EUR m.    -0.2    -0.2   +3.7%  +0.01 
CEWE Group                                Unit    Q1 2023 Q1 2024   %    abs. 
Turnover                              EUR m.    155.3   165.7  +6.6%  +10.3 
EBIT                                  EUR m.     5.2     8.1   +55.2% +2.9 
Total special effects                EUR m.    -0.8    -0.8    ---    --- 
EBIT before special effects           EUR m.     6.1     8.9   +46.3% +2.8 
EBT                                   EUR m.     5.1     8.7   +71.4% +3.6 

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Rounding differences may occur. Exact values have always been used for percentage deviation calculations.

Notes to the "Earnings by Business Segment" chart

1) Photofinishing: Production and sale of photo products such as the CEWE PHOTOBOOK, calendars, greeting cards, wall art and individual (analogue and digital) photos as well as other photo products

2) Retailing: Trading in photo hardware, such as cameras and lenses, in Norway, Sweden, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia

3) Commercial online printing: Production and sale of commercial print products in the online printing portals of SAXOPRINT, viaprinto and LASERLINE Should you have any queries, please contact: CEWE Stiftung & Co. KGaA, Axel Weber (Investor Relations) Tel.: 0441 / 404 - 552, Fax: 0441 / 404 - 421, Email: IR@cewe.de

Internet: cewe.de , pixum.de , deindesign.de , whitewall.com , cheerz.com ,

saxoprint.de, viaprinto.de , laser-line.de

You are welcome to join us at one of these investment conferences or to follow up on our pending publications:

Financial schedule

insofar as already scheduled)

05.06.2024 Annual General Meeting 2024, Weser-Ems-Halle Oldenburg

15.08.2024 Publication Interim Report H1 2024

22.08.2024 Montega Conference HIT, Hamburg

25.09.2024 Berenberg & Goldman Sachs German Corporate Conference 2024, Munich

26.09.2024 Baader Investment Conference 2024, Munich

14.11.2024 Publication Interim Statement Q3 2024

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May 15, 2024 01:00 ET (05:00 GMT)