A very profitable year for ASBIS, with record breaking months in last quarter

GROUP EXCEEDED THE UPGRADED FINANCIAL FORECAST, NET PROFIT IN 2019 ROSE 27%

ASBISc Enterprises Plc, a leading distributor of IT products in the emerging markets of Europe, the Middle East and Africa, generated excellent financial results in 2019 as a whole and in the 4^th quarter of 2019. Sales revenues in 2019 exceeded USD 1.9 billion, compared to USD 2.1 billion in 2018, a decline of 7%. Net profit in 2019 rose by 27%, to USD 15.2 million, from USD 12.0 million in 2018. In 4Q 2019 the Group generated revenue of USD 664 million, compared to USD 571 million in the same period of 2018, an increase of 16%. Net profit in 4Q 2019 rose 63%, to USD 8.0 million, from USD 4.9 million in 4Q 2018.

ASBIS remains the distributor of first choice for many global IT producers, and the Group’s strategy is to generate the best possible results for its shareholders. In 2019 the greatest share in the Group’s revenue was generated in the countries of the Former Soviet Union (53.5% share) and Central & Eastern Europe (nearly 27% share). The largest country in terms of revenue generated in 2019 was Russia. Poland, with 2019 revenue reaching almost to USD 50 million, ranked among the top 10 countries with the biggest revenue contribution in the Group, for the first time in several years.

ASBIS achieved its financial forecast for 2019, as revised upwards on the 18th of November 2019, which projected sales revenue between USD 1.7 and 1.9 billion and a net profit after tax between USD 13 and 14 million.

On the 19^th of December 2019, the Group paid shareholders an interim dividend from 2019 profits in the amount of USD 0.06 per share (totalling USD 3,330,000).

In January 2020 ASBIS concluded an agreement to acquire 40% of the shares of Clevetura LLC, based in Minsk, for a total of USD 584,000. Clevetura LLC is a Belarusian startup, which designed and launched in 2019 a unique Click&Touch keyboard, the first in the world based on Touch-Keys technology developed and patented by the Company. Click&Touch keyboards will be sold under the Prestigio brand.

“We are very pleased with the financial results generated in 2019, and we regard the 4^th quarter as particularly successful,” said Siarhei Kostevitch, CEO and Chairman of ASBISc Enterprises Plc. “It was one of the best single quarters in our history. Our expectations for a strong year emanated from the results in 2018, were materialized to a very good extent. At a time of a slight revival in the IT market, we took a great advantage. We promised to focus on profitability in 2019 and delivered our promises: net profit in the 4^th quarter rose by 63%, and for 2019 by 27%. In 2019 we once again paid our investors an interim dividend, a practice established in 2018, and something we believe is the right strategy to thank our long standing investors. This is of course achieved, given the very strong cash flows of the Company. We will give further information on the final dividend for 2019 after announcing our Annual Report.”

Siarhei Kostevitch added: “This year also promises to be very interesting. We intend to continue focusing on growth of both our own brands and traditional components distribution. We are strongly entering distribution and production of technologically advanced products and IT solutions. We began this in 2020 by purchasing 40% of the shares of the Belarusian company Clevetura LLC, thanks to which we were the first in the world to launch the Touch-Keys technology, on which the Prestigio Click&Touch keyboard is based. This technology has been received enthusiastically by the market, and currently further development work is underway to prepare a new generation of keyboards using the Touch-Keys technology, which may be also used in laptops, tablets, iPads and smart TVs.”

DETAILED SALES DATA  

SALES BY REGION

The share of the Former Soviet Union in ASBIS’s total revenues rose to 53.5% across the four quarters of 2019. Sales in the Middle East & Africa are mainly in the United Arab Emirates, which in the 4^th quarter grew by over 21%.

SALES BY COUNTRY  

The analysis by country provides a better understanding of the trends mentioned above. Growth in countries of the Former Soviet Union resulted from the trends in Russia (+10.2% in 4Q 2019 and -4.6% for the 12 months of 2019), Ukraine (+33.1% in 4Q 2019 and +4.3% for the 12 months of 2019), Kazakhstan (+56.5% in 4Q 2019 and -12.0% for the 12 months of 2019), and Belarus (+27.2% 4Q 2019 and +4.7% for the 12 months of 2019). Growth in sales in the Former Soviet Union was driven by the increase in sales of new Apple products and large IT projects completed in December 2019.

Meanwhile, the decline in Central & Eastern Europe was driven by trends in Slovakia (+5.6% in 4Q 2019 and -7.2% for the 12 months of 2019), Czech Republic (-3.6% in 4Q 2019 and -6.8% for the 12 months of 2019), and Romania (-26.3% in 4Q 2019 and -22.6% for the 12 months of 2019).

Notably, in 2019 Poland was placed among the 10 largest countries for the Group in terms of sales, for the first time in many years.

SALES BY PRODUCT LINE

Among other product lines, the Company noted a positive trend in 4Q 2019 and in the 12 months of 2019 in sales of accessories and multimedia (+32% and +44% respectively) and network products (+21% and +15% respectively).

For additional information, please contact:  

Iwona Mojsiuszko

8Sense Public Relations

Tel. +48 502 344 992

E-mail iwona.mojsiuszko@8sensepr.pl

^{About ASBISc Enterprises Plc}

^{ASBISc Enterprises Plc is one of the leading distributors of IT industry products in the emerging markets of Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA): Central and Eastern Europe, the Baltic republics, the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and North Africa, combining a wide range geographical operations with a wide portfolio of products distributed in the "one-stop-shop" model.}

^{ASBISc Enterprises Plc is based in Cyprus and specializes in the distribution of computer hardware and software, mobile solutions, IT components and peripherals, and a wide range of IT products and digital equipment. The Company was established in 1990 and currently selling to 60 countries worldwide.}

^{The Group distributes products of many vendors, and manufactures and sells own brands products: Prestigio (smartphones, tablets, external storage,, GPS devices, car-DVRs, multi-boards etc.), Canyon (power banks, networking products and other peripheral devices), Perenio („IoT”) and Atlantech (servers, data storage, data center solutions).}

^{ASBIS has subsidiaries in 26 countries, more than 1,800 employees and about 30,000 customers. In 2019, sales exceeded USD 1.9 billion.}

^{The Company’s stock has been listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange since October 2007 under the ticker symbol “ASB” (ASBIS).}

^{For more information, also visit the Company’s website at www.asbis.com or investor.asbis.com}