Press release
Regulated Information
Aalst-Erembodegem, October 28, 2021 – Ontex Group NV (Euronext Brussels: ONTEX) today announced its results for the nine months ending September 30, 2021.
Esther Berrozpe, Ontex CEO, commented: “Over the first nine months, the focus has been on stabilizing the top line and our revenue started to grow quarter on quarter since Q1. The unprecedented raw material and supply chain crisis has impacted both costs as well as our ability to source raw materials. This had a very significant impact on our Q3 results. In this environment, we are accelerating our actions to turnaround Ontex’s performance. We must become more efficient by reducing our cost base and at the same time, be more customer centric to maximize our growth opportunities. Cost savings generated so far this year have offset a large part of the raw material price increases. The long-term structural changes are on track and lay important foundations for the future. I am confident that these will be of considerable benefit once the current challenges are behind us.”
Q3 2021
- Revenue of €512 million leading to top-line stabilization: +9% at reported currencies and stable LFL; sales up in Adult Care & Baby Pants. Q3 grew sequentially +2% compared to Q2 despite c. €13 million of orders not produced due to supply chain disruptions
- Adjusted EBITDA: €40 million, -29.9% vs prior year; strong generation of structural operational efficiencies and reduced overhead cost partially offset the impact of unprecedented increases in raw material prices
- Adjusted EBITDA margin of 8%, -344 bps year-on-year
- Currency effects: +€5 million on sales and +€1.2 million on Adjusted EBITDA
- Net debt: €837 million at September 30, 2021, a slight decrease compared to December 31, 2020 and June 30, 2021
Strategic priorities update
- Simplify our Organization: Major reorganizations of Commercial Divisions, end-to-end Supply Chain, and Innovation activities
- Focus on attractive categories: Solid mid-single digit sales growth in focus areas of Adult Care and Baby Pants
- Accelerate innovation cadence: Announced new Excellence Center in Mayen (Germany) for Global Engineering and Global Baby Care Platforms
- Structurally reduce costs: generated €42 million net costs savings YTD
- Drive higher capacity utilization: Announced project to phase out manufacturing in Mayen (Germany) by mid-2022
- Deleverage: received €81 million following an arbitration settlement agreement regarding the acquisition of the Brazilian business
- Drive our sustainability agenda: broke ground at Ortona (Italy) factory to house Italy’s largest system for on-site solar power generation and consumption as another step towards our goal of carbon neutral operations by 2030
2021 Outlook
Since the beginning of the year, Ontex has been generating significant net operating and SG&A costs savings, which have been important given the unprecedented rise in commodity raw material prices as the year progressed. More recently the Group has faced additional cost increases in energy, as well as higher costs and availability issues in transportation and other raw materials. In this context, Ontex now expects for FY 2021:
- LFL revenue c. -1%
- Adjusted EBITDA margin of c. 9%
- Strict cash control with capital expenditure at 3.5% of revenue
Key Financials for first 9 months and Q3 2021
| 9 months | Third Quarter | |||||
| in € million, except per share data and ratios | 2021 | 2020 | Variance | 2021 | 2020 | Variance |
| Reported Revenue | 1,492.9 | 1,561.3 | -4.4% | 512.3 | 507.9 | 0.9% |
| LFL Revenue | 1,527.1 | 1,561.3 | -2.2% | 507.8 | 507.9 | 0.0% |
| Adjusted EBITDA | 141.0 | 183.1 | -23.0% | 40.0 | 57.1 | -29.9% |
| Adjusted EBITDA Margin | 9.4% | 11.7% | -228 bps | 7.8% | 11.3% | -344 bps |
| Net Debt | 836.9 | 877.6 | -4.6% | |||
| Net Debt / LTM Adj. EBITDA | 4.32x | 3.43x | 0.89x | |||
Investor update
Ontex will hold a virtual investor update on December 15, 2021.
Arbitration settlement received and used to reduce Debt
Ontex announced on September 15, 2021 that it had entered into an agreement with Hypera S.A. (“Hypera”, formerly Hypermarcas S.A.) settling claims relating to the acquisition of the Brazilian personal hygiene business of Hypera by Ontex. As part of the settlement, Ontex received €81 million (BRL 500 million) from Hypera on October 1, 2021. After deduction of c.€7 million arbitration-related costs, the balance of the settlement amount has been used to pay down debt, consistent with the Group’s ambition to reduce leverage.
Q3 2021 Highlights
Q3 2021 revenue was €512 million, stable LFL versus the prior year and up 2% sequentially versus Q2 2021 despite c.€13 million of orders which could not be fulfilled due to supply chain disruptions. The areas identified in June as key to delivering sustained revenue improvement were visible in Q3: starting to reverse the sales trend of retailer brands in Europe, outperforming in North America, growing our current emerging markets business, and accelerating in Adult Care. On a reported basis, sales were up 0.9% due to a positive currency impact of +€4.5 million in the quarter.
Adjusted EBITDA in Q3 2021 was down -29.9% compared with prior year at €40 million. Significantly higher raw material prices were the main driver of the decline, and lower volumes weighed on the quarter as well. These impacts were partly mitigated by the strong reduction of net operating expenses and SG&A related to ongoing productivity and overhead savings programs. Adjusted EBITDA margin of 7.8% was down -344 bps versus prior year including a currency impact of +€1.2 million.
Net debt was €837 million at September 30, 2021, slightly reduced compared to the positions at December 31, 2020 and
June 30, 2021. Leverage was 4.32x at September 30, 2021. Net debt pro forma following the settlement payment of €81 million received on October 1, 2021 was €756 million, resulting in pro forma leverage of 3.91x.
Operational Review: Categories
| Categories | 9 months | Third Quarter | ||||||
| in € million | 2021 | 2020 | % ∆ as reported | % ∆ at LFL | 2021 | 2020 | % ∆ as reported | % ∆ at LFL |
| Ontex Reported Revenue | 1,492.9 | 1,561.3 | -4.4% | -2.2% | 512.3 | 507.9 | 0.9% | 0.0% |
| Baby Care | 807.2 | 871.8 | -7.4% | -4.6% | 282.5 | 282.1 | 0.1% | -1.1% |
| Adult Care | 510.4 | 503.7 | 1.3% | 3.9% | 174.2 | 165.3 | 5.4% | 5.0% |
| Feminine Care | 147.5 | 162.3 | -9.1% | -12.0% | 46.9 | 51.3 | -8.6% | -9.0% |
| Other | 27.8 | 23.5 | 18.2% | 22.7% | 8.7 | 9.1 | -4.4% | -5.5% |
Baby Care
Q3 2021 Baby Care revenue decreased -1.1% year-on-year, while at the same time Q3 was the second quarter in a row of mid-single digit sequential growth. Sales of Baby pants in Q3 grew mid-single digits compared to prior year in both Europe and AMEAA as a result of our focus to capture more of the consumer trend towards this product type. Baby diaper revenue was lower overall based on a decline in Europe and growth in AMEAA. For the first 9 months of 2021 Baby Care sales were down -4.6%.
Adult Care
Q3 2021 sales in the Adult Care category grew 5.0% year-on-year and were also up sequentially versus Q2 2021. Adult Pants increased ahead of the overall category led by double-digit growth in AMEAA. Retail channel revenue was up 14% with double-digit growth in both Europe and AMEAA. Sales in institutional channels were slightly lower, and continued to be impacted by a slow recovery in occupancy rates in care homes. Adult Care sales were up 3.9% in the first 9 months of 2021.
Feminine Care
Revenue in the Feminine Care category decreased -9.0% Q3 2021, strongly impacted by packaging shortages in Europe. AMEAA revenues were slightly down. Without the lost sales in Europe, category revenue would have grown low single digit in the quarter. Revenue of Feminine Care products decreased -12.0% in the first nine months of 2021.
Operational Review: Divisions
| Divisions | 9 months | Third Quarter | ||||||
| in € million | 2021 | 2020 | % ∆ as reported | % ∆ at LFL | 2021 | 2020 | % ∆ as reported | % ∆ at LFL |
| Ontex Reported Revenue | 1,492.9 | 1,561.3 | -4.4% | -2.2% | 512.3 | 507.9 | 0.9% | 0.0% |
| Europe | 902.7 | 970.6 | -7.0% | -6.6% | 307.6 | 315.6 | -2.5% | -3.1% |
| AMEAA | 590.2 | 590.6 | -0.1% | 5.0% | 204.7 | 192.3 | 6.5% | 5.0% |
NB: In June 2021 two geographic divisions, Europe and AMEAA, were formed which include the relevant geographic activity previously reported in the Healthcare Division. Historical sales data can be found in the annex.
Europe
Europe Division revenue, including the institutional business previously reported separately in the Healthcare Division, declined -3.1% in Q3 2021 year-on-year, yet improved sequentially versus Q2 and made progress against strategic priorities.
The Q3 sales decrease was mainly due to an estimated €8 million of orders which could not be fulfilled as a result of supply chain disruptions. Excluding this impact, revenue would have been broadly stable, as a net negative impact of contract gains and losses was offset by growth in Adult Care and Baby pants.
The balance of gains and losses of retailer brands will turn positive in Q4 2021 for the first time this year. Pricing trends showed slight improvement in Q3 as some increases were already implemented where this can be done, yet overall a decrease was recorded due to targeted actions taken earlier in the year. Further pricing up actions are under discussion with all customers in light of significant input cost inflation. While these developments contribute to the revenue turnaround, supply chain disruptions continue to impact sales, with limited visibility as to when they will be resolved.
Q3 was a solid quarter in Adult Care and Baby pants. Mid-single digit growth was achieved in Adult Care, including double-digit growth in retail channels as the trend towards more in-home use continued. Baby Care sales were down overall due to legacy contract losses in diapers, and the ongoing switch towards pants, where a solid mid-single digit increase was posted. Feminine Care revenue declined mostly due to a shortage of packaging available.
Americas, Middle East, Africa and Asia (AMEAA)
Sales in the AMEAA Division grew 5.0% in Q3 2021 year-on-year and was stable sequentially compared to Q2, including the impact of c. €5 million of orders in the USA unfulfilled due to supply chain issues. In the Americas revenue was up led by double digit growth in Brazil and high single digit growth in Mexico. Brazil recorded a solid sales performance in the quarter thanks to continued strong growth of Baby pants, and also the launch of Turma da Mônica baby diapers, featuring characters from Brazil’s most iconic cartoon series. Mexico revenue increased due to growth in both Baby and Adult Care. Sales in the USA were temporarily lower because of supply chain disruptions which are being urgently addressed, in order to serve current customer demand and new business wins starting in Q4. Our new US production facility is preparing to start-up in early 2022 to meet growing demand. Overall revenue in the Middle East, Africa and Asia decreased slightly however sales in both Adult Care and Baby Care rose double digits in Turkey.
Corporate information
The above press release and related financial information of Ontex Group NV for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2021 was authorized for issue in accordance with a resolution of the Board on October 27, 2021.
Audio Webcast
Management will host an audio webcast for investors and analysts on October 28, 2021 at 10:00am CET/09:00am UK. A copy of the presentation slides will be available at https://ontex.com/investors
Click on the link below to attend the presentation from your laptop, tablet or mobile device. Audio will stream through your selected device, so be sure to have headphones or your volume turned up.
https://channel.royalcast.com/ontexgroup/#!/ontexgroup/20211028_1
A full replay of the presentation will be available at the same link shortly after the conclusion of the live presentation.
Financial Calendar
Investor Update December 15, 2021
FY 2021 February 23, 2022
Q1 2022 May 12, 2022
H1 2022 July 29, 2022
Q3 2022 November 10, 2022
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