Covid 19 accelerates digitalisation and sustainability

OSLO: The first quarter for Itera’s core digital business was characterised by solid organic growth of 11% and an operating profit margin of 15%.

Covid 19 accelerates digitalisation and sustainability 1

Itera reports operating revenue of NOK 144.4 million (NOK 128.4 million) for the first quarter of 2021 related to its core digital business, representing growth of 11%.

“The impact of the pandemic has accelerated digitalisation and sustainability in many industries, and we are seeing positive developments in the market for our services in all locations. We are investing in our Delivery Factory at Scale and our Cloud Centre of Excellence to help customers accelerate their digital transformation and their move to the cloud,” says Arne Mjøs, CEO of Itera.

For Itera’s core digital business, total operating expenses in the first quarter of 2021 were 9% higher at NOK 122.4 million (NOK 112.0 million). The operating result before depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the first quarter of 2021 was a profit of NOK 28.3 million (NOK 26.5 million), corresponding to an EBITDA margin of 19.6% (20.2%).

The operating result (EBIT) for the first quarter was a profit of NOK 22.0 million (NOK 18.7 million) and the EBIT margin 15.3% (14.3%).

The revenue from Itera’s own data centre operations was down by 59% from the corresponding quarter of last year. This is in accordance with our sunsetting strategy for this line of business. The remaining on-premise data centre portfolio is expected to be substantially migrated to the cloud or terminated by the end of this year.

This will have a negative impact on revenue and profitability for the business as a whole in 2021 before the cloud business gains momentum and contributes to growth and profitability. Total operating revenue including the data centre operations was NOK 156.7 million (NOK 161.0 million) with an EBIT of NOK 18.7 million (NOK 19.2 million).

Net cash flow from operating activities was NOK 1.2 million (NOK 7.5 million) in the first quarter of 2021 and NOK 92.9 million (NOK 92.5 million) for the last twelve months.

Itera’s headcount at the end of the first quarter of 2021 was 567 as compared to 527 at the end of the first quarter of 2020. Itera has nearshore development centres in Slovakia and Ukraine. The proportion of Itera’s capacity located in these locations was 50% (49%) at the end of the first quarter.

At its meeting on 27 April 2021, the Board of Directors confirmed a resolution to propose an ordinary dividend for 2020 of NOK 0.25 per share at the Annual General Meeting on 25 May 2021. It will also ask for its authorisation to approve possible additional dividends to be renewed.

The revenue from Itera’s 30 largest customers accounted for 74% of its operating revenue, which is three percentage points lower compared to the first quarter of 2020. New customers accounted for 11% of revenue.

“In the first quarter we also launched our revitalised brand – finding the human solutions to complex challenges and living our commitments as a responsible business and trusted partner. At Itera, we are energised by the opportunity to guide and enable our customers on their digital transformation towards sustainable businesses – and to contribute to the advancement of the societies we live in,” says Arne Mjøs.

Itera creates sustainable digital business for innovative businesses in data-intensive market segments. The group delivers solutions and services in interdisciplinary teams within technology, strategic consulting and design, and works in a distributed delivery model, with teams across national borders.

For the past five years, Itera has been named one of Norway’s 25 most innovative companies and its distributed delivery model was recognised as best in the world by the Global Sourcing Association (GSA) in 2018. The group has 567 employees, operations in Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Iceland, Slovakia and Ukraine and is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker ITERA.

www.itera.com

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