DGAP-News

Bastei Lübbe AG falls short of earnings expectations according to provisional calculations in the 2016/2017 financial year

DGAP-News: Bastei Lübbe AG / Key word(s): Profit Warning Bastei Lübbe AG falls short of earnings expectations according to provisional calculations in the 2016/2017 financial year 23.06.2017 / 15:30 The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. Bastei Lübbe AG falls short of earnings expectations according to provisional calculations in the 2016/2017 financial year

Cologne, 23 June 2017 - Bastei Lübbe AG (ISIN DE000A1X3YY0), which is listed in the Prime Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, is set to close the 2016/2017 financial year with lower-than-expected earnings (EBITDA). While preparing the consolidated financial statements, the company came to EBITDA of approx. EUR 5 million according to provisional calculations. The Group earnings are thus considerably below the expected EUR 13 to 15 million. There are several reasons for this decline, particularly one-time items. Besides a weaker fourth quarter (January to March 2017), the final purchase price allocation for the majority in Buchpartner GmbH acquired in spring 2016 had a higher than expected negative effect. Finally, the Management Board assesses the value of capitalized royalties newly, which has led to an extraordinary reduction in value. "The latter two points are classic one-time items. Neither of them affects cash flow, but they severely diminish our earnings in the IFRS statement of financial position," explains Thomas Schierack, CEO of Bastei Lübbe AG.

Alone the earnings effect in relation to royalties burden the EBITDA with EUR 4.1 million. In a nutshell, it relates to the assessment of the future usability of these rights. The Management Board has decided to write off faster in the future so that the first year has an extraordinary effect.

The measurement of the acquisition of Buchpartner GmbH also results in a significant change: In consultation with the Group auditors, the provisional purchase price allocation was revaluated as part of the annual financial statements. As a result, there was a EUR 0.5 million higher material expense resulting from the uncovered reserves in the acquired inventories. In the consolidated financial statements, this leads to a one-time effect on EBITDA of EUR -1.5 million, which does not affect cash flow.