Fraport Group Interim Report - First Half 2016: Fraport Reports Solid Performance in Challenging Environment

FRANKFURT, Germany, August 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Geopolitical situation and restrained tourist bookings affect several Group airports 

FRA/gk-rap - In the first half of 2016, the Fraport Group achieved revenue of just over €1.2 billion.  Although this represents a €17.1 million (or 1.4 percent) decline year-on-year, it must be taken into account that a change in the Group's scope of consolidated companies occurred in the previous business year. During 2015, Fraport sold 51 percent of its capital shares in the FCS Frankfurt Cargo Services subsidiary and also made a full disposal of Air-Transport IT Services, both formerly wholly-owned subsidiaries.  Adjusting for these changes, Group revenue in the first half of 2016 advanced by €19.2 million, up 1.6 percent.  Revenue was positively impacted by higher revenue from the sales of land, among other factors.  Outside of Frankfurt, the Group's subsidiaries, Lima Airport Partners, Twin Star and AMU Holdings Inc., also contributed to revenue growth.  Among other things, declining passenger volumes at Frankfurt Airport contributed to negative effects on revenue.

The Group's EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization) declined by 1.7 percent to €378.4 million in the first six months of 2016.  This was also due to the slowdown in passenger traffic at Frankfurt Airport and the corresponding drop in retail revenues.  With depreciation and amortization remaining almost constant, Group EBIT reached €214.6 million (down 3.3 percent).  The slightly improving financial result as well as lower income tax expenses led to a Group result of €99.7 million (down 3.2 percent).   Higher cash flow used in investing activities and one-off tax effects in the first quarter of 2016 caused free cash flow to contract by €40.4 million to €149.3 million.

Fraport AG's executive board chairman, Dr. Stefan Schulte, emphasized that the Group achieved solid first-half results despite the challenging environment.  Schulte said: "With air traffic being negatively impacted by geopolitical circumstances, several of our Group airports experienced significant traffic declines."  Thus, Fraport AG's executive board has revised its passenger forecast for Frankfurt Airport and is now expecting a slight drop in passenger traffic. Schulte, however, reconfirmed the Group's financial target for the full year: "Also taking into account the expected positive effects resulting from the sale of a partial stake in St. Petersburg, we are maintaining our outlook for the Group's asset, financial, and earnings position for the 2016 business year, despite the challenging environment."

Fraport's home-base Frankfurt Airport (FRA) welcomed a total of 28.7 million passengers in the first six months of 2016, representing a 0.9 percent decline year-on-year. In particular, the second quarter saw flight bookings drop amid travelers' concerns after terrorist attacks in various countries.  Cargo throughput (airfreight + airmail) rose by 0.4 percent in the reporting period, to over 1.0 million metric tons.  Aircraft movements decreased by 1.0 percent to some 227,000 takeoffs and landings, reflecting airlines' ongoing consolidation measures and the general trend towards deployment of larger aircraft.  Accumulated maximum takeoff weights (MTOWs), by contrast, climbed by 1.2 percent - reaching a new record high.

Fraport AG's international portfolio of airports reported mixed results in the first half of 2016. Ljubljana Airport (LJU) in Slovenia welcomed 598,271 passengers in the January-to-June period, a 4.5 percent decline on the previous year (in June 2016, down by 9.2 percent to 135,757 passengers). At Lima Airport (LIM) in Peru's capital, by contrast, traffic soared by 11.0 percent to 8.9 million passengers (in June 2016, up 13.0 percent to 1.5 million passengers). The two Twin Star airports of Varna (VAR) and Burgas (BOJ) on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast also reported significant traffic growth:  combined, the two airports welcomed 1.2 million passengers - an increase of 24.8 percent year-on-year (in June 2016, up 23.4 percent to 779,938 passengers).  Passenger numbers at Antalya Airport (AYT) in Turkey continued to decline. In the first half of year, traffic at AYT contracted by 30.5 percent to 7.3 million passengers (in June 2016, down 47.1 percent to 1.9 million passengers).  Also Pulkovo Airport (LED) in St. Petersburg, Russia, experienced a noticeable slowdown in the first six months of the year, with traffic dropping by 6.5 percent to 5.7 million passengers (in June 2016, down 7.6 percent to 1.4 million passengers).  Hanover Airport (HAJ) in northern Germany also registered a slight 0.7 percent decline in traffic to 2.4 million passengers (in June 2016, down 2.9 percent to 521,676 passengers).  By contrast, Xi'an Airport (XIY) in central China continued its strong growth path of recent years.  In the first half of 2016, traffic at XIY climbed by 11.3 percent to 17.5 million passengers (in June 2016, up 10.8 percent to 2.9 million passengers).

The Group Interim Report can be found on the Fraport website at http://www.fraport.com/en/investor-relations/events-und-publications/publications/interim-reports.html 

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Fraport AG - which ranks among the world's leading companies in the global airport business - offers a full range of integrated airport management services and boasts subsidiaries and investments on three continents. The Fraport Group generated sales of €2.6 billion and profit of about €297 million in 2015.  In 2015, some 111 million passengers used airports around the world in which Fraport has more than a 50 percent stake. In its Mission Statement, Fraport places the focus on customers. The Group's commitment to ensuring a "good trip" to all passengers and travelers is also reflected in the corporate slogan: "Gute Reise! We make it happen". This dedication applies to all of Fraport's business activities in Frankfurt as well as  the Group's airports worldwide.

At its Frankfurt Airport (FRA) home base, Fraport welcomed more than 61 million passengers and handled about 2.1 million metric tons of cargo (airfreight and airmail) in 2015. For the current summer timetable, FRA is served by 95 passenger airlines flying to 290 destinations in some 100 countries worldwide. Half of FRA's destinations are intercontinental (beyond Europe) - underscoring Frankfurt's role as a leading hub in the global air transportation system. In Europe, Frankfurt Airport ranks second in terms of cargo tonnage and is the fourth busiest for passenger traffic.  With about 59 percent of all passengers using Frankfurt as a connecting hub, FRA also has the highest transfer rate among the major European hubs.

Frankfurt Airport City has become Germany's largest job complex at a single location, employing more than 80,000 people at some 500 companies and organizations on site. Almost half of Germany's population lives within a 200-kilometer radius of the FRA intermodal travel hub - the largest airport catchment area in Europe. FRA Airport City also serves as a magnet for other companies located throughout the economically vital Frankfurt/Rhine-Main-Neckar region. Thanks to synergies associated with the region's dynamic industries, networked expertise, and outstanding intermodal transportation infrastructure, FRA's world route network enables Hesse's and Germany's export-oriented businesses to flourish in global growth markets. Likewise, FRA is a strategic gateway for companies wanting to access the huge European marketplace.  Frankfurt Airport - which is strategically located in the heart of Europe - is one of the most important hubs in the global logistics chain.  

Fraport AG
Christopher Holschier
Spokesperson
Press Office,
Corp. Communications,
60547 Frankfurt, Germany
Telephone: +49-69-690-70553
E-mail: c.holschier@fraport.de
Internet: http://www.fraport.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/FrankfurtAirport