2021

• Consolidated revenues 2020 are EUR 154.6 million
• Consolidated earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) come to EUR 5.2 million
• Revenues and earnings for the 2021 financial year expected to be at the previous year's level

Haselünne, February 3, 2021 – Berentzen-Gruppe Aktiengesellschaft, which is listed on the regulated market (General Standard) of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (ISIN: DE0005201602), today published its preliminary, not yet audited operating results for the 2020 financial year and an outlook for the 2021 financial year.

For the last year, the corporate group generated consolidated revenues of EUR 154.6 million (2019: EUR 167.4 million). Consolidated earnings before interest and taxes (consolidated EBIT) are expected to be EUR 5.2 million (2019: EUR 9.8 million) and consolidated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (consolidated EBITDA) are expected to be EUR 14.1 million (2019: EUR 18.4 million) in 2020.

“Thus, the group’s key performance indicators are within the ranges we had forecast for the 2020 financial year last July”, said Oliver Schwegmann, one of the members of the Executive Board of Berentzen-Gruppe Aktiengesellschaft. For the 2020 financial year, the Berentzen Group had anticipated consolidated revenues in a range of between EUR 153.0 million and EUR 160.0 million, consolidated EBIT between EUR 4.0 million and EUR 6.0 million, and consolidated EBITDA between EUR 13.0 and EUR 15.0 million. Against the background of the coronavirus pandemic, the corporate group had withdrawn its original forecast last March and was not able to provide a new forecast until July due to the associated uncertainties.

“Although the coronavirus pandemic caused a significant decline in revenues and earnings, we ultimately succeeded in generating a solid profit in every quarter of the year”, Schwegmann said. The Berentzen Group’s business was negatively impacted particularly by the nearly complete closure of hotels and restaurants in the second and fourth quarters, but also by the widespread curtailment of private and public holidays throughout the year. Above all, sales of brand-name spirits suffered from the consequences of the pandemic in the all-important end-of-year holiday season. “The fact that we as a group turned a clearly positive profit despite these challenges can be credited to our strategy of broad diversification in the three segments of Spirits, Non-Alcoholic Beverages, and Fresh Juice Systems and our use of different distribution channels. Thanks to this diversification, declines in especially hard-hit product categories and sales channels were partially offset by growth in sales of relatively pandemic-resistant products”, Schwegmann said.

Outlook for the 2021 financial year

In a capital market notice, the Berentzen Group today presented a forecast for the 2021 financial year. The corporate group expects consolidated revenues in a range of EUR 152.0 million to EUR 158.0 million, consolidated EBIT in a range of EUR 4.0 million to EUR 6.0 million, and consolidated EBITDA in a range of EUR 13.0 million to EUR 15.0 million. The forecast ranges for EBIT and EBITDA are therefore exactly identical to the previous year’s forecast. “As before, our business will be noticeably impacted by the ongoing restrictions on private and social life due to the coronavirus pandemic. Thus, our business in the 2021 financial year will be subject to similar conditions on the whole as in 2020 and therefore a comparable level of revenues and earnings can be expected. With increasing vaccinations, we anticipate a gradual return of public life in the further course of the year and we are therefore convinced that we will generate profitable growth again in the second year of the pandemic“, Schwegmann said.

Due to the lockdown conditions in effect for many weeks now, the group’s performance in the first three months of the 2021 financial year will be significantly below the level of the first quarter of 2020, during which the group’s business was impacted by drastic restrictions only in the second half of March. “But we also know that conviviality and festive socializing will return to people’s lives, even if only in small steps at first. And that is exactly what the Berentzen Group stands for with its products. The corporate group will then return to the growth path that was interrupted by the coronavirus pandemic“, Schwegmann said.

The preliminary operating results of Berentzen‐Gruppe Aktiengesellschaft are subject to verification by the independent auditor and approval by the Supervisory Board. The final operating results and further information about the 2020 financial year and the 2021 forecast will be published according to plan on March 25, 2021 with the 2020 Annual Report.