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Sphera Franchise Group
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RON41.4
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Record high sales and increasing profits for Sphera Franchise Group in Q3 2022

2022-11-14

Highlights:

  • Consolidated sales of RON 347.6 million in Q3 2022, the best quarterly sales in Sphera’s history
  • EBITDA of RON 37 million, +24% considering normalized EBITDA for Q3 2021
  • Net profit for Q3 2022 of RON 24.3 million, due to efficient cost management
  • Excellent topline performance and positive bottom line in Q3 drive healthy profitability for 9M, with net profit reaching RON 15.6 million
  • Double-digit sales increases across all companies in the Group for 9M

Sphera Franchise Group (“Sphera”), the largest group in the food service industry in Romania, delivered another record-high quarter, with consolidated sales reaching RON 347.6 million in Q3 2022, 22% higher compared to Q3 2021. The Group registered a net profit of RON 24.3 million for Q3 2022 (+6% Year-on-Year), while normalized EBITDA stood at RON 37 million (+24% YoY).

“We had the best quarter historically on all the markets in terms of restaurant sales, continuing the trend of consecutive quarterly increases. The net profit registered in Q3 offset the lower results in Q1, driving healthy profitability for the nine-month. The bottom line performance was due to higher customer presence in restaurants, reflected in an increase in transactions overall, the contribution of the units opened in the preceding 12 months, price adjustments and a high rate of sales through own channels, which reached 85%. We continue our focus on driving sales throughout Q4 2022 through product innovation and a robust marketing strategy”, stated Calin Ionescu, CEO, Sphera Franchise Group.

Sales generated in Q3 2022 in Romania contributed with RON 297.3 million, Italy with RON 45.5 million, while the Republic of Moldova reached historic highs with a turnover of RON 4.8 million. In terms of split per brand, KFC brought all-restaurant revenues of RON 299 million, Pizza Hut of RON 30.7 million and Taco Bell of RON 17.9 million.

The like-for-like sales were also higher in Q3 2022 compared to the same period of last year across all Sphera brands, registering a positive evolution of 16%. The highest like-for-like increase was registered by KFC Moldova (+48%), followed by KFC Italy (+34%), Taco Bell (+18%), KFC Romania (+13%) and Pizza Hut (+6%).

Following the complete lifting of COVID-19 restrictions and the return of pre-pandemic habits, as well as good weather that encouraged dine-in and takeaway dining, the share of sales for delivery reached the lowest level since the onset of the pandemic, of RON 61.1 million in Q3 2022. The total sales for delivery in the first nine months of 2022 were RON 209.5 million, of which 12% using Sphera’s own delivery capacity.

Despite the larger scale of operations, due to efficient cost management, the G&A expenses increased only by 2.5%, reaching RON 13.4 million in Q3 2022.

Double-digit growth across brands & healthy profitability for 9M 2022

For the first nine months of 2022, the Group recorded RON 953.6 million in consolidated revenue, a 31% increase year-on-year (YoY), restaurant operating profit of RON 64.9 million, an 8% decrease YoY, and a normalized EBITDA of RON 58.3 million, a 4% decrease YoY. The excellent topline performance and positive bottom line in Q3 2022 offset the losses the Group registered in Q1 2022. Consequently, Sphera Franchise Group closed the nine-month period with a net profit of RON 15.6 million.

“We are very pleased with the outstanding performance recorded in Q3 2022. The excellent evolution in terms of revenues and operating profitability in the third quarter demonstrates the strength of the brands we operate and validates the impact of the strategy we have committed to in delivering robust and sustainable results. Despite the challenges and the uncertain macroeconomic context, we will make efforts to continue to effectively navigate the market conditions, and remain confident in our ability to reach our targets”, stated Valentin Budeș, CFO, Sphera Franchise Group.

In terms of individual performance, all companies in the Group registered significant increases in sales in 9M 2022 compared to the same period of 2021, led by KFC Italy (RON 117.8 million, +53%), KFC Moldova (RON 12.3 million, +39%), Taco Bell (RON 49.4 million, +37%), Pizza Hut (RON 88.7 million, +36%), and KFC Romania (RON 685.4 million, +27%).

Between September 30, 2021, and September 30, 2022, Sphera opened 10 net new restaurants: 5 KFC in Romania, 1 KFC in Italy, 3 Pizza Hut and 1 Taco Bell.

As of September 30, 2022, Sphera Franchise Group operated 174 restaurants: 94 KFC restaurants in Romania, 2 in Moldova and 20 in Italy, as well as 43 Pizza Hut restaurants (including one Pizza Hut Delivery sub franchise), 14 Taco Bell restaurants, and one Paul restaurant. In Q4 2022, Sphera opened a new KFC restaurant in Timisoara and estimates to open 4 additional restaurants before yearend – 3 KFC and a Taco Bell.

As of September 30, 2022, the Group had 4,643 employees, out of which 4,312 in Romania, 254 in Italy and 77 in the Republic of Moldova.

Note: When analyzing the performance of the Group, the management’s focus is on the financial results that exclude the impact of IFRS 16. Therefore, the basis for the financial analysis are the results excluding IFRS 16.