DGAP-News

freenet AG improves earnings figures in the third quarter and at the same time increases number of contract customers significantly

DGAP-News: freenet AG / Key word(s): Interim Report/9-month figures
freenet AG improves earnings figures in the third quarter and at the
same time increases number of contract customers significantly

06.11.2014 / 18:00

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freenet AG improves earnings figures in the third quarter and at the same
time increases number of contract customers significantly
- Gross profit up by 6.9 per cent to 194.2 million euros (previous year:
181.6 million euros)

- EBITDA climbs by 4.0 per cent to 96.3 million euros (previous year:
92.6 million euros)

- Group result rises by 4.1 per cent to 66.2 million euros (previous
year: 63.6 million euros)

- Free cash flow* up by 6.3 per cent to 79.6 million euros (previous
year: 74.9 million euros)

- Customer ownership grows by 0.230 million to 8.90 million (previous
year: 8.67 million)

- Group revenue falls by 3.5 per cent to 762.1 million euros (previous
year: 789.6 million euros), mainly as a result of the decision to
dispense with hardware trading activities with very low or no margins

Büdelsdorf, 6 November 2014 - freenet AG [ISIN DE000A0Z2ZZ5] published its
interim report for the third quarter of 2014 today and thereby confirmed
its outlook for the financial years 2014 and 2015. The report indicates
that all of the company's earnings figures have developed in a highly
positive manner compared to the previous year. In conjunction with the
slightly lower Group revenue, the gross profit margin increased to 25.5 per
cent.

The customer ownership figure - in which the target groups of the
particularly lucrative contract customer segment and the discount segment
(no-frills) are concentrated, and which serves as a key performance
indicator in the company - was increased by around 230,000 customers to
8.90 million (previous year: 8.67 million), representing an increase of 2.7
per cent. The contract customer target group grew with particular dynamism,
increasing its numbers by 150,000. Around 80,000 of the additional new
customers are accounted for by the no-frills segment, in which there is
generally less demand for personal advice.

The average monthly revenue per contract customer (postpaid ARPU) grew to
21.7 euros in the third quarter of 2014, 0.2 euros higher than in the
previous quarter. The decrease compared to the same period last year (22.6
euros) amounted to 0.9 euros. This was again primarily attributable to
price competition on the German market. In addition, existing freenet
customers with older contracts and higher monthly basic charges are also
switching to the smartphone tariffs currently on offer. In comparison,