TOUAX : REVENUE FROM ACTIVITIES IN THE 3rd QUARTER 2018: +6%

PRESS RELEASE                                                                                                             Paris, 15 November 2018 - 5:45 PM

YOUR OPERATIONAL LEASING SOLUTION

REVENUE FROM ACTIVITIES^[1] IN THE 3^rd QUARTER 2018: +6% 

ANALYSIS OF REVENUE FROM ACTIVITIES

Revenue from activities in the 3^rd quarter of 2018 totalled €39.6 million compared to €37.4 million in the 3^rd quarter of 2017, equal to an increase of 6%.

Over the quarter, leasing revenues increased slightly to €34.7 million while sales of equipment increased significantly (€4.6 million compared with €2.9 million in the 3^rd quarter of 2017).

Over the first nine months of the year, combined revenue from activities amounted to €114 million (€118.6 million at constant scope and exchange rates compared to €121.7 million in 2017).

Leasing revenues therefore amounted to €103.9 million at constant scope and exchange rates, an improvement over the 3^rd quarter compared to the first two quarters of the year, confirming a positive trend. The Freight Railcar business recorded an increase in leasing revenues, mainly due to higher utilisation rates. Leasing revenues are down slightly for the River Barges division. The Containers activity recorded a decline due to currency effects and a reduction of the managed fleet following the disposals realised during 2017, which were not offset by the gradual recovery of investments in 2018 initiated after asset refinancing in June.  The utilisation rate remains very high.

Equipment sales are up at €12.9 million, with the Container division having developed trading operations. Fees on syndication and capital gains increasing by 10.4% to €1.2 million, with, in particular, the syndication of a railcar portfolio to an investment fund realised during the 2^nd quarter.

Analysis of the contribution by division

Freight railcars: The Freight Railcars business is the group's leading activity in terms of capital employed. At the end of September 2018, revenue from activities in the Freight Railcar division increased from €39.8 million to €40.2 million as a consequence of increased leasing revenues (+4.8% over the first nine months of the year and +8.8% over the 3^rd quarter). As noted in the first two quarters of 2018, the utilisation rate at the end of September continues to increase in a context of a growing market, allowing leasing rate increases to be initiated.

River Barges: Revenues in the River Barges division amounted to €11.5 million, up 3.9% thanks to divestment transactions for €2 million while leasing revenues are decreasing over the period, due to a worsening market in South America.

Containers: The Containers activity consists mainly of assets managed on behalf of third parties. Revenue from activities in the Containers division totalled €57.1 million in the first 9 months of the year (€61.1 million at constant scope and exchange rate effects) compared to €67.5 million in 2017.

The leasing market remains very dynamic with a utilisation rate over the period reaching 98.9%. Leasing revenues for the first nine months of the year totalled €50.9 million in 2018. Around 30% of the decrease is due to the fall in the dollar while the remaining decrease is due to the smaller size of the fleet. Since the beginning of 2018, leasing revenues have increased quarter after quarter, confirming the positive trend. Equipment sales amounted to €5.8 million, up 20.9% over the first 9 months of the year, with the division developing new container trading operations.

The miscellaneous line includes miscellaneous invoicing and the remaining modular buildings sales activities in Africa, which are expected to continue to grow through to the end of the year.

OUTLOOK

Revenue growth over the 3^rd quarter of 2018 compared to last year and compared with the two previous quarters marks the return of an upward trend benefiting the Group's recovery.

The demand for rail freight transport continues to grow in Europe, thus pushing demand for freight railcar leasing, especially in the intermodal transport segment for which Touax is the second largest player in Europe.

Container demand is expected to remain strong through to the end of the year, and for the full year of 2019, with global GDP growth expected to reach 3.7%.

The Group is therefore feeling confident about its objective of returning to profitability since this is already visible in the way leasing revenues have continued to increase since the beginning of the year.

UPCOMING DATES

• 22 February 2019:         Revenue from activities 4^th quarter 2018
• 28 March 2019:             2018 Annual Results - SFAF Presentation
• 29 March 2019:             Conference call to present annual results

Your contacts:

TOUAX                                                                                                                                    ACTIFIN
Fabrice and Raphaël WALEWSKI                                                                            Ghislaine Gasparetto
Managing Directors
[email protected]                                                                                               [email protected]
www.touax.com                                                                                                    Tel: +33 1 56 88 11 11
Tel: +33 1 46 96 18 00