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Highlight Group quintuples EBIT

DGAP-News: Highlight Communications AG / Key word(s): Quarter Results
Highlight Group quintuples EBIT

20.05.2015 / 17:41

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- EBIT improves from CHF 0.9 million to CHF 5.0 million

- Consolidated net profit for the period of CHF 0.6 million; earnings
attributable to Highlight shareholders remain constant at CHF 0.7
million

- Forecast confirmed for fiscal year 2015

The Highlight Group has made a sound start to the current fiscal year. The
financial figures of the first quarter of 2015 were hit hard by the Swiss
National Bank's decision on January 15, 2015, to remove the currency peg
between the Swiss franc and the euro and the cap of 1.20 EUR/CHF.

Group development in the first quarter of 2015

- At CHF 64.3 million, consolidated sales for the first three months were
down on the corresponding figure for the previous year (CHF 125.7
million), as expected. The decrease mainly stemmed from the decline in
external sales in the Film segment, as no international Constantin Film
productions were released in the first quarter of 2015, in contrast to
the previous year.

- Accordingly, consolidated operating expenses fell by CHF 62.3 million
to CHF 74.9 million. The decrease was mainly due to amortization,
depreciation and impairment, which reduced by CHF 53.1 million to CHF
12.1 million

- As the overall decrease in consolidated operating expenses was more
substantial than the decline in sales, EBIT improved to CHF 5.0
million. It was therefore more than five times higher than in the first
quarter of 2014 (CHF 0.9 million).

- Consolidated net profit for the period of CHF 0.6 million (previous
year's period: CHF 1.0 million) was down slightly, with earnings
attributable to Highlight shareholders remaining constant at CHF 0.7
million. The fact that the positive EBIT development was not reflected
in the net profit for the period is largely due to currency effects,
particularly with regard to the strong appreciation of the Swiss franc
against the euro.

- Consolidated equity (including non-controlling interests) was down CHF
13.4 million at CHF 93.5 million as against the end of 2014 (CHF 106.9
million). This decrease is primarily due to currency translation
differences of CHF 13.0 million resulting from the translation of the