TX Group grows and posts huge profit thanks to SMG transaction
TX Group 2021 has recovered from the major setback in the first pandemic year and has grown organically again. Thanks to a major positive special effect in connection with the founding of the Swiss Marketplace Group, the Zurich media company posted a very high profit. Shareholders will receive a high dividend.
The company, which is primarily known for its media brands such as Tages-Anzeiger or 20 minutes known TX Group reports a profit of CHF 832.7 million for 2021. In addition to the operational recovery, a book profit of CHF 778.5 million in connection with the contribution of the online platforms Ricardo, Tutti.ch, Homegate and Car For You to the newly formed joint venture SMG contributed significantly to this. By way of comparison, TX Group had posted an annual loss of CHF 94.6 million in 2020. In addition to the weak economy, the result at that time was also burdened by a large goodwill impairment at Paid Media.
High dividend
Shareholders can also be pleased about the good result. Following the waiver in the previous year, they will again receive a regular dividend of 3.20 Swiss francs. In addition, as previously announced, there will be a special distribution of 4.20 Swiss francs. With this, the owners of the Group will benefit from the SMG transaction, which brought the TX Group total sales proceeds of 270 million francs. This special dividend is also to flow in the same amount in the next two years.
But it was not only special effects that drove up profits. The operating business also performed significantly better again in 2021. Operating profit before effects of business combinations, which is the focus of TX management, improved by 53.5 percent to 127.9 million Swiss francs. The margin reached 13.4 percent compared to 8.9 percent in the previous year.
Unlike in 2020, the Group also grew again. Reported sales rose by 2.3 percent to 957.4 million Swiss francs. Organically, i.e. excluding the units divested in the course of 2021, the increase was as much as 6 percent.
"With organic sales growth of 6 percent, we can look back on the 2021 financial year with satisfaction," publisher and Chairman of the Board of Directors Pietro Supino is quoted as saying.
20 Minuten with strongest sales growth
The strongest revenue growth was recorded by the advertising marketer Goldbach (operating income +13.3%) and the 20 Minuten unit with its commuter media. Here, after the marked decline in the previous year, 2021 again resulted in an increase in revenue of 12.7 percent. However, the marketplaces and platforms combined in the TX Markets business unit also increased (+2.3%).
The situation was different at Tamedia, where revenues were down 2.4 percent. The pay media continue to struggle with the structural change in the media industry. However, the decline in sales was more than compensated for by cost savings, which led to an increase in the operating result. Thanks to the recovery of the operating business, Tamedia will repay the "Corona emergency aid" drawn in 2021 to the federal government, the Group continues to write. This will burden the 2022 financial year with 3.1 million.
Looking ahead, management is, as usual, not very specific and does not provide an outlook. The Group also announced that it will publish a sustainability report from fiscal 2022. (SDA)
