itelligence AG has enjoyed a very good start to fiscal year 2017, recording extremely strong revenue and, in particular, earnings growth compared with the previous year. Revenue increased by 15.9% in the first three months of 2017, from MEUR 177.8 to MEUR 206.1. Earnings before interest and taxes saw above-average growth of 84.6%, from MEUR 3.9 to MEUR 7.2. The extremely strong revenue performance was attributable to both organic growth (+8.0%) and newly acquired companies (+7.9%). Orders on hand at itelligence AG rose by 29.0%, from MEUR 696.2 in the previous year to MEUR 898.3 as of March 31, 2017.
Norbert Rotter, CEO of itelligence AG: « We are specifically focusing on improving our earnings strength this year. Our results for the first quarter show that we have made a good start. Our revenue growth is intact. We expect to see a continued high propensity to invest in digitalization, particularly in the new SAP technology SAP S/4HANA. »
In the individual revenue segments, consulting business enjoyed revenue growth of 13.8%, from MEUR 78.5 to MEUR 89.3. Managed Services broke through the MEUR 100 barrier for the first time thanks to substantial revenue growth of 21.1%, from MEUR 83.5 to MEUR 101.1. Cloud subscription revenues almost doubled, increasing from MEUR 1.3 in the first quarter of the previous year to MEUR 2.5 (+92.3%). At MEUR 11.7, revenue in the Licenses segment was down slightly on the outstanding prior-year figure of MEUR 13.5 (-13.3%).
In terms of geographical distribution, the largest segment, DACH, remained firmly on its growth path with revenue growth of 26.8%, from MEUR 78.6 to MEUR 99.7. The Western Europe segment also posted growth of 7.6% to MEUR 45.3 after MEUR 42.1 in the previous year.
In Eastern Europe, revenues remained largely unchanged year-on-year at MEUR 20.0 compared with MEUR 20.5 in the first quarter of 2016. The USA segment recorded revenue growth of 10.0%, from MEUR 32.9 to MEUR 36.2. Finally, Asia saw revenue growth of 20.7%, from MEUR 2.9 in the first quarter of the previous year to MEUR 3.5. In the Other segment, revenues amounted to MEUR 1.4 after MEUR 0.8 in the previous year (+75.0%).
In terms of earnings performance, itelligence AG enjoyed an extremely strong first quarter with substantially above-average earnings growth. EBIT improved by 84.6%, from MEUR 3.9 in the previous year to MEUR 7.2 in the first three months of 2017. Accordingly, the EBIT margin rose from 2.2% in the previous year to 3.5%. EBITA improved from MEUR 5.6 to MEUR 9.2 in the first quarter, with the EBITA margin increasing from 3.1% to 4.5% as a result.
Dr. Michael Dorin, CFO of itelligence AG since January 1, 2017: « One of our overriding aims for the year as a whole is to return our EBIT margin to around 5%. Our results for the first quarter represent an important first step in achieving this. We intend to maintain this dynamic earnings performance as 2017 continues. »
The Management Board is confirming its forecast for fiscal year 2017, with revenues in the region of MEUR 820-830 and an EBIT margin of around 5%.
About itelligence
itelligence is one of the leading international full-service providers of solutions in support of SAP solutions, employing more than 5,800 highly qualified employees in 24 countries. As a frequently awarded SAP partner, itelligence is an SAP Hybris Gold partner and global value-added reseller. itelligence is an SAP-certified provider of cloud services, SAP-certified provider of hosting services for SAP HANA® Enterprise Cloud and an SAP platinum partner. itelligence realizes complex projects in the SAP solution-based environment worldwide. The company’s services in support of SAP solutions range from consulting and licensing to application management services and hosting services to proprietary industry-specific solutions. In 2016, itelligence generated total sales of EUR 777.9 million.