Board of Directors reviews quarterly financial results at September 30, 2020

  • During the first nine months of the year, the portfolio companies as a whole recorded a significant increase in EBITDA (aggregate pro forma figure +16.4%) compared with the same period of 2019. Looking only at the third quarter, the gross operating margin comes to 76.8 million euro, 18.8% up on 2019. A good third quarter therefore consolidates a 2020 in marked growth compared with the previous year, despite the impact of the Covid-19 health emergency which is reflected in a limited decline in revenue.
  • The investment portfolio, built up in recent years, has demonstrated a balance that should be able to cope with a period of severe economic crisis, with the preponderant part of the portfolio represented by companies operating in sectors linked to the food supply chain and the energy sector, with particularly positive results achieved by Caffè Borbone.
  • Net Asset Value at September 30 amounts to 1,656.1 million euro, stable compared with June 30, 2020 (1,629.3 million euro).
  • The net financial position of Italmobiliare S.p.A., positive for 389.3 million euro, is down by 180.3 million euro compared with December 31, 2019, mainly due to the acquisition of 80% of Officina Profumo Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella.  
  • Due to this acquisition, the portion represented by the portfolio companies registered a further increase of 161.7 million euro (of which about 120 million in the third quarter).

Milan, November 5, 2020 - The Board of Directors of Italmobiliare S.p.A. today approved the quarterly financial results for the nine months ending on September 30, 2020.

During the first nine months of the year, also in light of a positive overall trend in the third quarter, the investment portfolio, which has mostly been built up in recent years, has demonstrated a balance capable of facing up to a particularly critical phase of the economy like the present one. Helped by the management and governance know-how contributed by Italmobiliare to the various portfolio companies, the first nine months of the year recorded an improvement in profitability at an aggregate level, despite a decline in turnover mainly due to the restrictions imposed by the pandemic. A path of efficiency, which in some cases must also discount non-recurring organisational investments, which was particularly evident in the third quarter of the year.

The performance of Caffè Borbone was particularly positive, with revenue for the third quarter up by 27% compared with 2019 and a gross operating profit for the first nine months of 2020 already higher than the result achieved in the whole of 2019. The Sirap Group's performance was also very positive, with a gross operating profit showing a distinct improvement. In addition, there was a better gross operating profit compared with the same period of 2019 for Tecnica Group, mainly thanks to Riko joining the group (and albeit in a scenario of considerable uncertainty due to the impact of the emergency on the winter season and therefore on revenue), a substantially stable EBITDA for Capitelli and the energy sector (Autogas Nord and Italgen), while Iseo and Officina Santa Maria Novella lag behind 2019 as a result of the Covid emergency. Overall - again on the basis of aggregate management data for the 9 months - the portfolio companies are showing an increase in EBITDA of more than 16% to approximately 166 million euro, despite the contraction in revenue essentially linked to the Covid-19 emergency and the related closures and developments that are hard to predict.

At September 30, Italmobiliare's Net Asset Value amounted to 1,656.1 million euro, stable compared with June 30, 2020 (1,629.3 million euro), versus a capitalisation of 1,245.6 million euro, a discount of 24.8%. The NAV per share, excluding treasury shares and after payment of a total dividend of 1.8 euro per share, amounts to 39.2 euro, a decrease of 5.54% compared with the same figure at December 31, 2019.

At September 30, 2020, the net financial position of Italmobiliare S.p.A. was positive for 389.3 million euro, 180.3 million euro lower than at December 31, 2019, with 62% allocated to the Vontobel Fund with a conservative risk profile in line with the Company's investment policies. The main flows include the acquisition of 80% of Officina Profumo Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella (-160.0 million euro).

The Italmobiliare share price (admitted to the STAR segment of the Stock Exchange on September 24, 2019) at the end of September 2020 had risen by 22.15% from the beginning of the year, compared with a 0.96% increase of the FTSE Italia STAR Index.

Key economic and financial data