Verkkokauppa.com - Tough Q4, acquisition caught the attention

• Q4 revenue declined by 4% y/y, totaling EUR 168.9m vs. 183.4m/183.7m Evli/cons. Growth was good in B2B, Computers, Games, Sports and Toys, while core categories suffered from weak demand. Gross margin improved to 15.5% (prev. 15.1%).
• Online sales represented 63% (prev. 62%) of total sales.
• Consumer segment represented 72% of total sales. B2B sales increased by 11% y/y, representing 20% of total sales. Exports segment is still lacking and represented 7% of total sales.
• Adj. EBIT amounted to EUR 5.3m (3.2% margin) vs. 5.5m/5.5m Evli/cons.
• EPS was EUR 0.09 vs. 0.09/0.12 Evli/cons.
• Board of Directors proposes dividend of EUR 0.246 vs. 0.25/0.25 Evli/cons.
• 2022 guidance: Net sales of EUR 590-640m and EBIT of EUR 19-25m.
• Last night, the company announced its acquisition of Finnish e-retailer e-ville.com. The acquisition supports Verkkokauppa.com's strategy to strengthen and expand its assortment in its own brands. E-ville.com generated net sales of EUR 10m and EBIT of EUR 0.5m (5% margin) during 4/2020-3/2021. The preliminary purchase price amounts to EUR 5.3m and is financed with cash (EUR 3.3m) and a special offering (EUR 2.0m). The parties have also agreed to additional purchase price installments of up to EUR 6.7m if certain sales-related terms are met. The preliminary purchase price is valued at approx. same multiples as Verkkokauppa.com is trading (EV/S: 0.5x vs. 0.5x and EV/EBIT: 11x vs. 14x). We will open the acquisition more in our company update (published tomorrow).