Q3 Report 2020
Release no. 17/2020
EBITDA* improving due to tight cost control
“We came out of Q3 with a good result despite operating in markets being impacted by COVID-19. Our business demonstrated resilience during the first volatile months since the outbreak which is thanks to the strong commitment of Columbus’ employees”, says Chairman of the Board, Ib Kunøe.
Financial highlights for the period 1 January to 30 September 2020
All numbers and comments are on the continued business excluding assets classified as held for sale and discontinued businesses.
DKKm | Q3 2020 | Q3 2019 | Development | YTD 2020 | YTD 2019 | Development |
| Revenue reported | 338 | 391 | -13% | 1,241 | 1,300 | -5% |
| Revenue from acquisitions | -6 | 0 | 0% | -33 | 0 | 0% |
| Organic revenue | 332 | 391 | -15% | 1,207 | 1,300 | -7% |
| EBITDA reported | 40 | 52 | -23% | 110 | 122 | -10% |
| Customer provision | 15 | 39 | -63% | 15 | 39 | -63% |
| Reversal of earn-out | -28 | -71 | -61% | -28 | -71 | -61% |
| EBITDA from acquisitions | -2 | 0 | 0% | -7 | 0 | 0% |
| Normalized EBITDA | 24 | 19 | 25% | 89 | 90 | 0% |
| Normalized EBITDA margin | 7% | 5% | 47% | 7% | 7% | 7% |
DKKm | Q3 2020 | Q3 2019 | Development | YTD 2020 | YTD 2019 | Development |
| Columbus Software licenses | 0 | 1 | -52% | 3 | 6 | -55% |
| Columbus Software subscriptions | 4 | 4 | 6% | 16 | 16 | -1% |
| Columbus Cloud | 3 | 2 | 24% | 8 | 6 | 46% |
| External software licenses | 14 | 15 | -8% | 57 | 52 | 11% |
| External software subscriptions | 33 | 39 | -14% | 128 | 138 | -7% |
| External cloud | 12 | 9 | 36% | 31 | 24 | 32% |
| Services | 268 | 315 | -15% | 983 | 1,033 | -5% |
| Other | 4 | 6 | -38% | 14 | 25 | -44% |
| Total net revenue | 338 | 391 | -13% | 1,241 | 1,300 | -5% |
| EBITDA | 40 | 52 | -23% | 110 | 122 | -10% |
Performance highlights for Q3 YTD 2020:
- Revenue declined by 5%, amounting to DKK 1,241m
- EBITDA declined by 10% to DKK 110m, but normalized EBITDA stable at DKK 89m
- Profit before tax declined by 25% to DKK 56m. Normalized profit before tax declined by 16%
- Recurring Revenue improved by 6%, constituting 25% of revenue
- Columbus Care grew by 16% to DKK 121m
- Cloud Services grew by 35% to DKK 40m, due to continued cloud conversion
- Staff cost decreased by 1% to DKK 784m as an effect of the capacity adjustment in March and April
- Other external cost decreased by 9% to DKK 109m. Reduction is primarily related to less internal travel cost
- Cash position improved by DKK 5m compared to 31 December 2019, total cash position amounts to DKK 152m
- Equity increased by DKK 30m since 31 December 2019, total equity of DKK 698m
Other highlights
Focus and simplicity:
- Launch of new strategy
- New CEO in process
- To-Increase software business, a very valuable asset, held for sale (revenue DKK 112.5m YTD, EBITDA DKK 58m)
- New organizational structure in the US
Outlook for 2020
Based on the financial performance in Q3 2020, current order book and pipeline forecast, our full year guidance for 2020 for the total business, including assets held for sale and discontinued businesses is as follows:
- Revenue is expected to be in the range of DKK 1,750m and DKK 1,850m.
- EBITDA is expected to be in the range of DKK 190m and DKK 200m.
Adjusted for the assets held for sale and discontinued businesses, our full year guidance for 2020 for our continued business is as follows:
- Revenue is expected to be in the range of DKK 1,600m and DKK 1,700m.
(Revenue in 2019 was DKK 1,775m) - EBITDA is expected to be in the range of DKK 125m and DKK 135m.
(EBITDA in 2019 was DKK 160m)
Live webcast and conference call
Columbus is hosting a live webcast and conference call at 12 November 2020 at 13:00 CET. The webcast is hosted by Interim CEO & Corporate CFO Hans Henrik Thrane.
Webcast: Please login to the webcast via Columbus’ investor site:
Conference call dial-in details:
- Denmark:
- UK/International: +44 (0) 2071 928000
- USA:
- Conference-ID: 1793581
Please dial in a few minutes before to allow time for registration of name and company. Questions can be raised during the webcast.
For further information, please contact:
- Hans Henrik Thrane, Interim CEO & Corporate CFO, ,
- Tine Rasmussen, Communication Director, ,
About Columbus
Columbus is a global IT services and consulting company with more than 2,000 employees serving 5,000+ customers worldwide. Columbus helps ambitious companies to maximize, transform and futureproof their business digitally. Columbus’ innovative solutions and services portfolio 9 Doors to Digital Leadership® delivers end-to-end digital solutions like cloud ERP, Digital Commerce, Data & Analytics, and Application Management that address the lifecycle and sustainability demands of the retail, distribution, food, and manufacturing industries. Columbus was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Denmark with offices and partners all over the world, delivering solutions and services locally—on a global scale. Columbus A/S is listed on
For more information: .
* Normalized EBITDA
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