2018 annual results

6 February 2019 - 7:30 am - Finances

· Revenue up 8.1% to €43.5 billion (up 9.2% in the fourth quarter 2018)
    - Concessions (up 4.6%): dynamic passenger numbers at VINCI Airports (6.8%¹); slight decline in motorway traffic at VINCI Autoroutes (-0.5%) due to social unrest at the end of the year
    - Contracting (up 9.0%): strong increase in business volumes and order intake at VINCI Energies and Eurovia; stabilisation at VINCI Construction
    - VINCI Immobilier: sharp growth in revenue (23.3%)
· Sound growth in earnings
    - Operating income from ordinary activities: up 8.5% to €5.0 billion
    - Net income attributable to owners of the parent: up 8.6% to €3.0 billion
· Strong increase in free cash flow to €3.2 billion (up 26%)
· Dividend proposed for 2018: €2.67 per share (up 9.0%)

Key figures

 

Xavier Huillard, VINCI’s Chairman and CEO, made the following comments:

“VINCI’s performance in 2018 was outstanding and reflects the strength of its concession-construction business model, both in France and abroad.

“In Contracting, there was strong growth in revenue and order intake at VINCI Energies and Eurovia, both of which stepped up their international development, particularly through two large acquisitions in the United States. VINCI Construction, which also saw growth in its order book, stabilised its business levels while focusing on improving profitability.

“In Concessions, VINCI Airports posted firm growth in passenger numbers at almost all its facilities. Following the addition of Salvador, Kobe and Belgrade airports, along with the Airports Worldwide portfolio, it now manages 45 airports. In 2019, on completion of the process to acquire a majority stake, VINCI Airports will include London Gatwick Airport in its portfolio. London Gatwick is the United Kingdom’s second-largest airport, the eighth-largest in Europe and will be the largest asset in the VINCI Airports portfolio (46 million passengers in 2018). VINCI Autoroutes’ traffic levels rose in the first 10 months of the year, as expected, with heavy-vehicle traffic remaining buoyant. That trend reversed at the end of the year because of disruption caused by the exceptional events in France.

“VINCI continued to enjoy very favourable financing conditions. Despite markets being more volatile, it was able to refinance debt at lower cost and strengthen its liquidity position.

“Against this backdrop, the Group is confident moving into 2019 and is projecting further growth in its revenue and net income.”

VINCI’s Board of Directors, chaired by Xavier Huillard, met on 5 February 2019 to finalise the 2018 financial statements⁴, which will be submitted for approval at the Shareholders’ General Meeting on 17 April 2019.

 

I. Outstanding financial performance

VINCI’s consolidated financial statements for 2018 show increases in revenue, Ebitda, operating income and net income attributable to owners of the parent.

Consolidated revenue totalled €43.5 billion, up 8.1% relative to 2017 (3.3% like-for-like growth⁵; a 5.6% positive impact from changes in consolidation scope, and a 0.8% negative effect from exchange rate movements).

- In France (57% of total), revenue was €24.8 billion, up 4.6% on an actual basis or 3.7% like-for-like, reflecting the good momentum in Contracting.

- Outside France (43% of total), revenue was €18.8 billion, up 13.2% on an actual basis or 2.8% like-for-like. Changes in consolidated scope boosted revenue by 12.2%, while currency movements had a 1.8% negative impact because of the euro’s rise against most currencies.

Concessions revenue totalled €7.3 billion, up 4.6% on an actual basis or 3.2% like-for-like.

- VINCI Autoroutes’ revenue rose 1.5% to €5.4 billion. Continuing the trends seen in previous quarters, traffic levels grew at a robust rate until mid-November. The exceptional social unrest which disrupted France until the end of the year led to a decline in traffic (-0.5%) over the whole year.

- VINCI Airports’ revenue rose sharply (14.0%) to €1.6 billion. That figure includes contributions from Salvador airport in Brazil (since 1 January 2018), the Airports Worldwide portfolio (since the end of August 2018) and Belgrade airport in Serbia (since late December 2018). Like-for-like, VINCI Airports’ revenue rose 9.4%, driven by continuing growth in passenger numbers across almost all airports.

- VINCI Highways’ revenue includes €93 million from Lamsac, concession-holder for the Lima ring road in Peru, which saw revenue boosted by the ramp-up of traffic on the second section that opened in June 2018.

Contracting revenue amounted to €35.8 billion, up 9.0% on an actual basis or 3.4% like-for-like. Positive market trends continued in 2018 for VINCI Energies and Eurovia, which both made some important acquisitions outside France. Meanwhile, VINCI Construction’s revenue stabilised.

- VINCI Energies’ revenue rose sharply to €12.6 billion (up 17.1% on an actual basis or 4.6% like-for-like). In France, revenue rose 3.7% like-for-like and accounted for 46% of the business line’s total revenue. Momentum was good in all business areas (building solutions, infrastructure, industry and ICT). Outside France, revenue increased 30.4% on an actual basis or 5.4% like-for-like, and accounted for 54% of total revenue. This was due not only to contributions from acquisitions but also from strong growth in most of VINCI Energies’ markets, including in particular Germany, Switzerland, Brazil and West Africa.

- Eurovia’s revenue rose significantly to €8.9 billion (up 10.1% on an actual basis or 7.3% like-for-like). In France, revenue increased 8.5% like-for-like, boosted by the upturn in demand for roadworks and urban development. It accounted for 56% of the business line’s total revenue. Outside France, the 11.0% increase in revenue included 5.8% like-for-like, with brisk business in Germany, Central Europe, Canada and Chile. It accounted for 44% of total revenue.

- VINCI Construction generated revenue of €14.2 billion, up 1.9% on an actual basis or 0.2% like-for-like. In France, where revenue accounted for 54% of the business line’s total revenue, the 2.5% growth like-for-like reflects solid trends in building and civil engineering markets, especially in the Paris region. Outside France, revenue declined 0.2% on an actual basis (including a 2.2% decline like-for-like) and accounted for 46% of total revenue. This reflects growth in Central Europe and Asia-Oceania (attributable to the contribution of Australian subsidiary Seymour Whyte, acquired at the end of 2017), together with an upturn in Africa (Sogea Satom). Revenue stabilised in the United Kingdom and fell in business activities in the oil and gas sector. The Major Projects Division, meanwhile, is starting a new cycle after the completion of several large projects.

VINCI Immobilier posted strong growth in revenue to €1,104 million (up 23.3% on a constant structure basis or 21.8% like-for-like), driven by brisk production in residential property and the conclusion of several commercial property projects in the Paris region and other major cities.

Consolidated cash flow from operations (Ebitda)⁶, amounted to €6.9 billion, up 6.1%, and Ebitda margin was 15.9%.

Operating income from ordinary activities (Ebit) rose 8.5% to €5.0 billion and Ebit margin was 11.5% (11.4% in 2017).

- In Concessions, Ebit rose 5.5% to €3.4 billion (including €2.7 billion from VINCI Autoroutes and €0.7 billion from VINCI Airports), equal to 47.2% of Concessions revenue (46.8% in 2017).

- In the Contracting business, Ebit was €1.5 billion, up 16.8%, equal to 4.1% of Contracting revenue (3.8% in 2017), with all business lines increasing their margins: at VINCI Energies, Ebit margin rose 10 basis points to 5.8%, Eurovia’s was up 20 basis points to 3.9% and VINCI Construction’s increased 30 basis points to 2.8%.

Recurring operating income, which takes account of share-based payment expense (IFRS 2), the Group’s share in the income or loss of companies accounted for under the equity method, and other recurring operating income and expense, rose 7.2% to €4.9 billion.

Net income attributable to owners of the parent was €2,983 million, up 8.6% compared with 2017.

Free cash flow improved sharply to €3,179 million (€2,525 million in 2017).

Financial investments, net of disposals, amounted to €2.8 billion, of which €1.6 billion in Contracting and €1.2 billion in Concessions.

Dividends paid and share buy-backs carried out in 2018, net of capital increases, represented a total outflow of €1.6 billion, up 11%.

Consolidated net financial debt was €15.6 billion at 31 December 2018, up €1.6 billion year-on-year as a result of the Group’s financial investments during the period. At the end of 2018, the Group had €13.6 billion of liquidity, consisting of €5.6 billion of managed net cash and €8.0 billion of confirmed back credit facility expiring in 2023.

The consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2018 are available on VINCI’s website: https://www.vinci.com/vinci.nsf/fr/investisseurs.htm

 

II. Positive operational performance

VINCI Airports: the total number of passengers handled across all airports managed increased 6.8%⁷ to over 195 million, with continuing strong growth at almost all facilities: Cambodia (up 20%), France and the United States (up 9%) and Portugal (up 7%). Annual passenger numbers broke new ground, rising to over 55 million in Portugal (of which 29 million in Lisbon), 11 million at Lyon-Saint Exupéry and 10 million in Cambodia. Passenger numbers increased 7.2% in the fourth quarter.

VINCI Autoroutes’ traffic levels declined 0.5% in 2018 (light vehicles down 0.9%; heavy vehicles up 2.1%) due to disruption in the fourth quarter (8.9% decline in traffic, comprising 10.2% decline in light-vehicle traffic and 1.7% decline in heavy-vehicle traffic).

 

In Contracting:

- Order intake for the year amounted to €38.6 billion, up 12% year-on-year. It fell 5% in France, due to a high base for comparison after several major contract wins relating to the Grand Paris Express project in 2017, but increased 32% outside France. Order intake was up 20% at VINCI Energies, 18% at Eurovia and 2% at VINCI Construction.

- The order book at 31 December 2018 amounted to €33.1 billion, up 13% over 12 months. It was €15.1 billion in France (down 3%) and €18.0 billion outside France (up 31%). The order book represented 11 months of average business activity in the Contracting business and increased in all business lines.

In the French residential property market, the number of homes reserved fell slightly (down 2% to 6,333 apartments), but the value of reservations continued to rise (€1,275 million, up 12%).

 

III. Other highlights in 2018 and January 2019

· New developments in Concessions

VINCI Airports added a number of new airports to its portfolio in 2018:

- Salvador airport (Brazil): 30-year concession starting on 2 January 2018. This airport generated revenue of €47 million in 2018 and attracted 8 million passengers (up 4.6%).

- Kobe airport in Japan: 42-year concession since 1 April 2018. This airport is being managed by VINCI Airports and its Japanese partner Orix, which each have a 40% stake.

- Airports Worldwide (AWW): acquired in August 2018, with 2018 revenue amounting to €33 million. This is a portfolio of eight airports, of which two are freehold (Belfast International Airport in the United Kingdom and Skavsta Airport in Sweden), two are operated under concession (Orlando-Sanford International Airport in the United States and Daniel Oduber Quiros International Airport in Liberia, Costa Rica, 45% stake), and four are under management contracts in the United States.

- Belgrade airport in Serbia, acquired in late December 2018 (25-year concession).

At the end of December, VINCI Airports signed an agreement to become the majority shareholder of London Gatwick Airport. The transaction is expected to be completed in the first half of 2019.

In January 2019, ANA (VINCI Airports) signed an agreement with the Portuguese government to increase airport capacity in the Lisbon region. As part of that agreement, ANA undertook to invest, by 2028, €650 million in the first phase of extending Lisbon’s existing airport and €500 million to create a new civil airport in Montijo.

VINCI Autoroutes: French government decrees relating to the motorway investment plan (PIA) were published in August and November 2018. The investments under this plan, amounting to €385 million, will be jointly financed by VINCI Autoroutes and the local authorities concerned.

On 15 June 2018, VINCI Highways brought into service section 2 of the Lima expressway in Peru after 15 months of works. This 9 km toll section supplements the existing 16 km stretch of the expressway linking the main business districts of the Peruvian capital.

· International expansion of Contracting

VINCI Energies acquired 28 companies in 2018, the largest of which were:

- Eitech, a Swedish engineering and electrical works company operating in the industry, infrastructure and building solutions sectors.

- PrimeLine Utility Services, a US company specialising in the energy and telecommunications infrastructure sectors.

- Wah Loon Engineering, a Singapore-based provider of integrated electrical and mechanical engineering services, specialising particularly in the construction of data centres.

Eurovia strengthened its position in North America with the following acquisitions:

- the assets of TNT, a Quebec-based group that operates a quarry and asphalt production units in the Montreal region;

- Lane Plants & Paving, the industrial and roadworks division of Lane Construction in the United States. The company has a presence in 10 states on the east coast of the United States and in Texas. With this acquisition, Eurovia has doubled its scale in the United States and become a leading roadworks company on the east coast, with a revenue of approximately $1.2 billion.

· VINCI Immobilier: broader range for the south of France

In January 2019, VINCI Immobilier completed the acquisition of a 49.9% stake in URBAT Promotion, a specialist homebuilder in the south of France.

· Innovation

- In 2018, VINCI Energies, through its Inerbiz fund, invested in three startups focusing on leading-edge technologies. One of them, Acklio, is the source of a new technology that ensures interconnection and interoperability between different types of network associated with the Internet of Things. This technology is set to become recognised as a standard worldwide by IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force).

- In October 2018, Eurovia, working for VINCI Autoroutes, built a 1 km section of motorway using only recycled materials. This “fully recycled road” is a first worldwide.

- Eurovia is testing new road surfacings for the Paris municipality as part of a trial aimed at reducing sound pollution and combating urban heat islands.

- VINCI Construction has developed a range of photovoltaic façades under the brand Aktivskeen and acquired European specialist Ertex Solar.

 

IV. Debt management

 

In 2018, against a backdrop of market volatility, the Group (rated A- by Standard & Poor's with positive outlook and A3 by Moody's with stable outlook) completed several debt refinancing transactions. These reduce the cost of debt, extend its average maturity and strengthen the Group’s liquidity.

ASF carried out two bond issues in 2018:

- in January, €1 billion of bonds due to mature in 2030 with an annual coupon of 1.375%;

- in June, €700 million of bonds due to mature in 2028 with an annual coupon of 1.375%.

VINCI, meanwhile, completed the following transactions:

- in March 2018, it arranged a $300 million credit facility with a bank, with a term of five years and the possibility of two one-year extensions;

- placements:

    - in mid-September, it placed a total of €1.75 billion of bonds with investors (€0.75 billion of bonds with a coupon of 1.0% maturing in September 2025 and €1.0 billion of bonds with a coupon of 1.75% maturing in September 2030);

    - in January 2019, it placed €950 million of bonds with a coupon of 1.625% due to mature in 2029.

Some of the Group’s subsidiaries also took advantage of attractive financing conditions.

- In April, Arcos – the company that holds the concession for the A355 motorway bypassing Strasbourg to the west – completed the financing of its project by taking out 27-year repayment loans for a total amount of €359 million with the European Investment Bank (EIB) and a banking syndicate.

- LISEA, a 33.4%-owned subsidiary of VINCI Concessions and the concession company for the South Europe Atlantic (SEA) high-speed rail line, refinanced its bank debt in a total amount of €2.2 billion. The transaction included a €1.3 billion bank loan with a 27-year term, and two tranches of fixed rate bonds totalling €905 million with maturities of 30 and 35 years placed with institutional investors. Vigeo granted Green Bond accreditation to these bonds, acknowledging the environmental commitments made by the borrower.

At 31 December 2018, the Group’s gross financial debt totalled €21.2 billion, with an average maturity of 6.4 years (5.7 years at 31 December 2017). Its average interest rate in 2018 was 2.25% (2.68% in 2017).

 

V. 2019 outlook: further growth expected

VINCI expects further growth in its revenue and net income in 2019.

· In Concessions:

- passenger numbers at VINCI Airports should, on a constant structure basis, continue to rise, although at a slower pace than in 2018 because of the high base for comparison. London Gatwick Airport should become part of the Group in the second quarter;

- traffic levels on VINCI Autoroutes’ networks should track economic activity in France, barring any exceptional events.

· In Contracting, strong order books suggest that all business lines will see a like-for-like increase in revenue. Contracting will also receive a boost from the full-year integration of recent acquisitions, mainly located outside France. Its priority will be to continue improving the margin.

 

VI. Dividend

The Board of Directors has decided to propose to the Shareholders’ General Meeting on 17 April 2019 that the amount of the dividend for 2018 be set at €2.67 per share, up 9.0%.

Since an interim dividend of €0.75 per share was paid in November 2018, the final dividend payment on 25 April 2019 (ex-date: 23 April 2019) would be €1.92 per share.

 

VII. Changes in share capital

At 31 December 2018, VINCI’s capital consisted of 597.5 million shares, including 42.7 million treasury shares (7.2% of the capital at that date).

 

VIII. CSR performance

In the continued application of its global performance goal, VINCI is committed, above and beyond economic and financial results, to combating the workforce-related, environmental and social issues involved in its business activities, and to reaching out systematically to dialogue with its stakeholders. Set out in the VINCI Manifesto, these commitments are applied in all Group entities worldwide. This approach goes hand in hand with VINCI’s role, which is to provide sustainable infrastructure and facilities that have a major impact on regions and the quality of life of their inhabitants.

· Workforce-related performance

The health and safety of employees, their training, sharing the benefits of growth and actions that foster diversity, integration through work and citizenship are among the Group’s workforce-related commitments:

- Employee health and safety is a top priority, which still has to be improved further. The frequency of lost-time workplace accidents has been reduced from 7.77 in 2013 to 6.10 in 2018. In 2018, 72% of VINCI companies recorded no lost-time workplace accidents, compared with 66% in 2013;

- Around 130,000 current and former employees collectively hold 9% of VINCI’s share capital. In 2019, the Group savings plan will be introduced in an additional five countries, enabling more than 75% of the Group’s workforce outside France to become VINCI shareholders;

- The Executive Committee has set the objective of doubling the number of women serving on the management committees of VINCI business lines and divisions, with the aim of increasing the percentage of women in managerial roles to 25% in the coming years;

- Over 4,000 long-term unemployed people have been supported by the Group to facilitate their return to employment;

- The Group’s 12 foundations have supported more than 400 projects run by local non-profit organisations, drawing on the sponsorship of 700 employees in France and other countries;

- The Group has made the necessary arrangements to offer placements in 2019 to 5,000 school pupils of about 14 years old from priority education areas throughout France;

To take account of the workforce-related situation in France and support the government initiative, VINCI’s general management requested that each of the entities in its business lines grant an exceptional bonus to boost the purchasing power of employees – the bonus was paid in January 2019.

· Environmental performance

VINCI takes the environment into account at every stage of its projects, its aim being to reduce their carbon footprint. This is also the focus of the Group’s innovation policy.

In addition, the Group’s approach aims to reduce its own environmental footprint. In 2018, the Group’s carbon intensity was 53.1 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per €1 million revenue, i.e. a 25% reduction from the 2009 figure. The goal is to bring this ratio down to 50 tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2020.

Following the Carbon Disclosure Project 2018 survey, VINCI was awarded an A- rating for its carbon strategy.

In 2019, the Group will set new goals in three major areas for 2030: energy and climate, the circular economy, water and the natural environment.

· Ethics and human rights

Applying the commitments in its Manifesto, VINCI’s projects are conducted in accordance with ethical principles and the protection of human rights, which are non-negotiable for all Group entities. The Code of Ethics and Conduct and the Anti-corruption Code of Conduct have been translated into 26 languages and are therefore accessible to 99% of VINCI employees in their own language. VINCI’s Guide on Human Rights sets out the rules to be applied by all Group entities, irrespective of their business activity or location.

 

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This press release is available in French and English on VINCI’s website: www.vinci.com.

The slide presentation of the 2018 annual results will be available before the press conference on VINCI’s website: www.vinci.com

 

APPENDIXES: see pdf version of press release

 

¹ Change on a pro forma basis including Salvador, Kobe, AWW and Belgrade for the full year in 2017.
² Excluding concession subsidiaries’ revenue from works done by non-Group companies (see Glossary).
³ Proposal with respect to 2018 to be made to the Shareholders’ General Meeting on 17 April 2019.
⁴ The consolidated financial statements have been audited and the Statutory Auditors’ report is in the process of being published.
⁵ Like-for-like: see Glossary.
⁶ Ebitda: cash flow from operations before tax and financing costs (see Glossary).
⁷ Data at 100%. Changes on a pro forma basis including Salvador, Kobe and Belgrade airports, as well as the AWW portfolio, over the full year in 2017.

 

About VINCI
VINCI is a global player in concessions, energy and construction, employing 280,000 people in more than 120 countries. We design, finance, build and operate infrastructure and facilities that help improve daily life and mobility for all. Because we believe in all-round performance, we are committed to operating in an environmentally, socially responsible and ethical manner. And because our projects are in the public interest, we consider that reaching out to all our stakeholders and engaging in dialogue with them is essential in the conduct of our business activities. Based on that approach, VINCI’s ambition is to create long-term value for its customers, shareholders, employees, partners and society in general.