Sýn hf.: Best operating profit of the year
The Condensed Interim Financial Statements of Syn hf. for the nine months 2019 was approved by the Board and the CEO on November 6th, 2019.
At the beginning of the year, the accounting treatment of broadcasting license rights was changed, amounts for 2018 have been restated.
Main results:
• Revenue for the third quarter of 2019 amounted to ISK 4,878 million, a decrease of 5.2% from the previous year. Revenue in the first 9 months decreased by ISK 454 million between years, or 3%.
• The quarter’s EBITDA amounted to ISK 1,623 million, compared to ISK 1,785 million in the third quarter of 2018. The EBITDA margin was 33.3% in the third quarter of 2019 compared to 34.7% in the same quarter last year. EBITDA for the first nine months of 2019 was ISK 4,100 million, a decrease of ISK 153 million from same period in 2018. The EBITDA ratio for the third quarter adjusted for IFRS 16 was 30%.
• Loss in the third quarter of 2019 amounted to ISK 71 million, compared to profit of ISK 207 million in the same quarter last year. The loss in the period is mainly due to one-off cost amounting to ISK 150 million consisting of the settlement of the company´s interest rate swap and severance cost associated with employee changes. Profit in the first nine months of the year amounted to ISK 384 million which is an increase of ISK 135 million from same period in 2018. One-off costs in the first nine months amounted to ISK 358 million.
• Cash flow from operations in the quarter amounted to ISK 1,235 million compared to ISK 1,185 million in the same period 2018, an increase of 4,22%.
• Investment in the period amounted to ISK 1,119 million, thereof ISK 303 million in property, plant and equipment and intangible assets (excluding broadcasting license rights) and ISK 806 million in broadcasting license rights.
• Negative cash flow from financial activities in the third quarter amounting to ISK 367 million compared to negative cash flow of ISK 45 million in the same period 2018 which is a change of ISK 322 million.
• The outlook for the year 2019 is unchanged.
Heiðar Guðjónsson, CEO:
„The results show that we are turning the business around. Our new internal budget plan is a much better indicator than the previous budget and gives us more visibility going forward. Cash flow from operations is better in Q3 year-on-year and the business is improving from Q2. Actions taken in the last quarter, renegotiating with vendors and a reduction in headcount will impact the results at year end and will be fully realized in 2020.
The board of directors approved the acquisition of Endor, which will become a subsidiary. There are numerous synergies and opportunities for earnings growth with this acquisition. The price paid is confidential but is around 1,5-5 times EBITDA depending on results.
We introduced Celtic Norse in London last week with our business partners. The major obstacle for growth in data centers in Iceland has been high costs of transmitting data to and from the country. Celtic Norse can have a meaningful impact on that.
The building of Reykjavik Data Center is progressing according to plan and signing up businesses to host in the center the data center is better than planned. “
Presentation on November 7th, 2019:
• An open meeting to present the results will be held on Thursday November 7th, 2019. The meeting will be held at Sýn hf. headquarters at Suðurlandsbraut 8, 108 Reykjavík and will begin at 8:30 am.
• Following the meeting, presentation materials will be available on Sýn’s investor relations page at and in Nasdaq Iceland’s news network.
• The meeting will be streamed live at
Further information:
Valdís Guðlaugsdóttir, Sýn’s director of communications, will answer requests for further information and can be contacted via email, or by telephone, .
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