- Revenues climbed 6% to reach €2,513m
- The EBIT margin remained at 11.4% at year-end
- Forecasts point to continued growth for 2010, both in terms of order intake and revenues
Despite the gloomy macroeconomic and sector-wide backdrop in 2009, Indra was able to meet the demanding targets announced at the start of the year. The company closed 2009 with net profit of €196m, representing a yoy increase of 7% in comparison to 2008.
Revenues climbed 6% to €2,513m, meeting the company’s target of 5%-7%. The Services segment witnessed 9% growth, while Solutions gained 4%. Indra reported positive growth in practically all of its vertical markets.
Order intake increased to €2,697m, up 5% on 2008. The order backlog stood at €2,579m, marking a yoy rise of 6%.
The EBIT margin stood at 11.4%, roughly in line with the figure for 2008, meeting the target of 11.3% -11.5%.
Indra also strengthened its balance sheet in 2009. The company’s financial position remained solid and it closed the year with net debt of €135m (0.4 x EBITDA and 10% down on 2008), having paid out an ordinary dividend in 2009 of €99m.
The international market, driver of company growth
In 2009, the relative weighting of international order uptake climbed to 38% of the total. With respect to revenues, 64% flowed in from the Spanish market, with the international market accounting for the remaining 36%. Indra further cemented its competitive foothold in international markets during the year, which resulted in an 11% increase in revenues, versus the 3% growth seen in Spain. By region, revenues grew by 10% in Europe, 15% in Latin America and 29% in the rest of the world.
2010 objectives and the general environment
On 27th January, the company published its growth and earnings guidance for 2010, a year in which we expect the same sluggish economic and sector-wide performance and similar competitive pressures to those seen in 2009, particularly within the Spanish market and in terms of institutional demand.
Yet despite the widespread gloom, the strength of Indra’s order book, coupled with the significant business opportunities to be had, primarily in the international market, mean that the company is confident of continued growth for the year, in terms of both order intake and revenues. The international market will be, for yet another year, the main driving force behind this growth.
High profitability remains the company’s core objective, requiring it to act accordingly during 2010 to ensure high levels of operational efficiency, in line with its approach over recent years. Given the recent and projected performance of the different business lines, vertical markets and regions, the company intends to roll out new initiatives in 2010, which will generate additional non-recurring expenses of roughly €10-11m.
Therefore, Indra’s targets for 2010 can be summarised as follows:
- To increase revenues by 2-4%, with more pronounced growth in the international market and little change within the Spanish market.
- To increase order intake by over 5%, which will once again outstrip revenues for the year, thereby leading to an increase in the order backlog.
- To maintain the EBIT margin (before the above-referenced non-recurrent expenses of €10-11m) at around 11.4%, on a par with the level reported for the last two years.
Indra attaches enormous importance to ensuring a sturdy financial base and balance sheet, thus affording it the freedom to step up its competitive presence in the different markets in which it operates, while also being able to offer shareholders enticing returns. The Board expects the company to continue applying the same dividend policy in 2010 as that seen in recent years (pay-out of between 50% and 60%).