UBISOFT REPORTS FIRST-HALF 2020-21 EARNINGS FIGURES
UBISOFT REPORTS FIRST-HALF 2020-21 EARNINGS FIGURESUpdated 2020-21 targets to reflect the delays of Far Cry 6
and Rainbow Six Quarantine due to COVID-19Ubisoft FY21 H1 EarningsFIRST-HALF 2020-21: NET BOOKINGS WELL ABOVE TARGET AND RECORD PROFITABILITY100 million unique players active in the first half of the fiscal year on PC and consoles, in line with the full calendar year 2019
Second fiscal quarter: Net bookings of €344.7 million, well above the target of approximately €290.0 million
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six®Siege:Solid player acquisition during the quarterOver 65 million registered players and circa €2.5 billion in cumulative total consumer spending since launch
Assassin’s Creed®Odyssey:Very sharp Q2 increase in sell-through, daily engagement and PRI, up by more than 200%, 250% and 400% respectively vs Assassin’s Creed Origins (on a comparable basis)
Tom Clancy’s The Division®2, For Honor®and The Crew®2:Double-digit year-on-year growth in Q2 net bookings for each of the three games
Just Dance®:Franchise Net bookings up by more than 100% in Q2 versus Q2 2019-20
Ubisoft Connect:Ubisoft’s player ecosystem gets the biggest overhaul in its history and paves the way for cross-platform features and communities to build discoverability, traffic and overall engagement
2020-21 TARGETS: Net bookings now expected between €2,200 million and €2,350 million and non-IFRS operating income between €420 million and €520 millionParis, October 29, 2020 – Today, Ubisoft released its earnings figures for the first half of fiscal 2020-21, i.e. the six months ended September 30, 2020.Yves Guillemot, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, said “The videogame industry is benefitting from very strong momentum. It is by far the fastest growing segment of entertainment and is driving unprecedented consumer engagement and social interactions. In this context, our strategy and competitive advantages continue to be fully validated by recent industry announcements of consolidation and new platform launches. The value of videogame IPs has never been so strong and these announcements highlight the importance of owning a deep and diversified portfolio of high-quality franchises. Thanks to this major asset, which we have built up organically over more than two decades, Ubisoft has entered into fruitful partnerships with the biggest technological and videogame platforms, who are all thrilled to onboard our content.At the same time, we continue investing to increasingly leverage our direct-to-player relationship. Over the past ten years, we have built our proprietary online distribution and services ecosystem, our unique identifier across games and platforms and our unparalleled production capacity. These are formidable assets for strengthening this direct relationship. Through multiple entry points and business models, and with the introduction of Ubisoft Connect, we aim to offer players frictionless access and enriching experiences across our full catalog of games. This will expand discoverability, traffic and global engagement to ultimately provide meaningful value for our players, our teams and our shareholders over the coming years.”Frédérick Duguet, Chief Financial Officer, said “Q2 was another quarter of outperformance for Ubisoft, driven by the appeal of our deep and diversified portfolio of franchises and our broad range of Live services. This excellent dynamic allows us to deliver record profitability over the first half. We are proud of our teams for demonstrating amazing dedication and resilience during these challenging times, especially considering that a clear majority of our developers are still working from home. They have continued to deliver outstanding Live services and content at a high cadence while simultaneously developing the most ambitious line-up in the industry. We continue to look at the year ahead with confidence and can’t wait to have players get their hands on our games. That starts today with Watch Dogs: Legion, which has solid ratings, and will be followed by Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, which is set to be one of this holiday season’s biggest mainstream titles, and by Immortals Fenyx Rising, our brand-new, fresh and light-hearted IP. Thanks to our early positioning, we expect the strong momentum of next gen consoles to be a material catalyst for our games.Benefitting from this strong momentum and despite having moved Far Cry 6 and Rainbow Six Quarantine to 2021-22 to leverage their full potential in the context of production challenges caused by COVID-19, our new non-IFRS operating income targets for 2020-21 remain within the boundaries we set back in May. Being able to maximize the long term value of our IPs while at the same time maintaining solid financial targets highlights the increasing recurring nature of our revenues, the strength of our portfolio of franchises, confidence in our holiday season release slate and current supportive industry dynamics.”Yves Guillemot added “During the quarter we undertook profound actions to create a safer and more inclusive workplace and to transform our corporate culture. That included auditing our HR processes and listening to feedback from more than 14,000 of Ubisoft’s employees, which helped give us a deep understanding of the situation and create a roadmap to guide our improvement. While much remains to be done, our teams’ testimonies showed a deep attachment to Ubisoft and a strong desire to defend the values of respect and benevolence on which the Group was built. We are committed to making the necessary changes to create an exemplary workplace culture of which everyone at Ubisoft can be proud.”Note
The Group presents indicators which are not prepared strictly in accordance with IFRS as it considers that they are the best reflection of its operating and financial performance. The definitions of the non-IFRS indicators as well as a reconciliation table between the IFRS consolidated income statement and the non-IFRS consolidated income statement are provided in an appendix to this press release.Income statement and key financial data (1) Based on the consolidated cash flow statement for comparison with other industry players (non reviewed).Sales and net bookingsIFRS 15 sales for the second quarter of 2020-21 came to €329.7 million, down 1.3% (up 1.6% at constant exchange rates1) compared with the €334.1 million generated in second-quarter 2019-20. For the first half of 2020-21, IFRS 15 sales amounted to €757.0 million, up 8.5% (9.4% at constant exchange rates) compared with the first-half 2019-20 figure of €697.5 million.Net bookings for second-quarter 2020-21 totaled €344.7 million, exceeding the target of approximately €290 million, and representing a decrease of 0.6% (up 2.1% at constant exchange rates) compared with the €346.9 million recorded for the second quarter of 2019-20. First-half 2020-21 net bookings stood at €754.7 million, up 14.2% (15.1% at constant exchange rates) on the €661.1 million generated in the first half of 2019-20.
Main income statement items2Non-IFRS operating income came in at €114.3 million, versus €6.9 million in the first-half 2019-20.Non-IFRS attributable net income amounted to €89.1 million, representing non-IFRS diluted earnings per share (EPS) of €0.71, compared with €12.8 million and €0.11 respectively for first-half 2019-20.IFRS attributable net income totaled €21.1 million, representing IFRS diluted EPS of €0.17 (€0.9 million and €0.01 respectively in first-half 2019-20).Main cash flow statement3 itemsNon-IFRS cash flows from operating activities represented a net outflow of €72.8 million (against a net outflow of €20.6 million in first-half 2019-20). This year-on-year change reflects a negative €146.0 million in non-IFRS cash flow from operations (versus a negative €104.1 million in first-half 2019-20) and a €73.3 million decrease in non-IFRS working capital requirement (compared with a €83.5 million decrease in the first six months of 2019-20).OutlookThird-quarter 2020-21Net bookings for the third quarter of 2020-21 are expected to come in at between €860 million and €960 million, versus €455.5 million in third-quarter 2019-20.Full-year 2020-21The Company is updating the target range communicated in May 2020, of between €2,350 million and €2,650 million for Net bookings and between €400 million and €600 million for non-IFRS operating income. This range took into account the possibility that one AAA game could be postponed to the 2021-22 fiscal year (with an estimated impact of more than 50% of the €200 million range for non-IFRS operating income) and the economic risks that the COVID-19 crisis posed to consumer spending and operating conditions of Ubisoft’s business partners.The Company updates its targets to reflect:The remarkable performance of the first half of the year;The impact of the COVID-19 crisis: Shift of Far Cry 6 and Rainbow Six Quarantine to 2021-22, two high-contribution titles, due to production challenges related to work from home;Favorable indications on video game consumption at the end of the year.Taking these new elements into account, Net bookings are adjusted to between €2,250 million and €2,400 million and non-IFRS operating income to between €450 million and €550 million. Additionally, unfavorable foreign exchange rates evolutions have an impact of around €50 million on Net bookings and €30 million on non-IFRS operating income. Consequently, the new 2020-21 targets for Net bookings are now in the range of €2,200 million to €2,350 million and non-IFRS operating income in the range of €420 million to €520 million.
Status on Ubisoft’s culture transformationOver the past few months, the Group has progressed on the action plan it outlined in July. More than 14,000 employees participated in a range of group-wide assessments, including an anonymous questionnaire, focus groups and listening sessions. This was essential in enabling the Group to get a better understanding of the situation and put in place the actions and resources necessary to address these issues.The progress of the last few months notably includes:The implementation of a compulsory anti-sexism and anti-harassment training. To date, 75% of teams have received this training.The recruitment of the VP, Global Diversity & Inclusion has been finalized and will be announced shortly.The creation of a Content Review Committee to ensure that the Group’s content and product marketing is aligned with Ubisoft’s values of respect and fairness.As a major player in the industry, Ubisoft must show the way by becoming exemplary.Recent significant events:Launch of Ubisoft Connect: Ubisoft announces that its current service ecosystem and community program, Uplay and Ubisoft Club, will be enriched and expanded under the name Ubisoft Connect. Thought and designed for the new era of gaming, through which gamers want to be able to play, progress and stay in touch with friends wherever they are, Ubisoft Connect lays the foundation that will allow Ubisoft’s games and services to live on all platforms and make cross-platform functionality a standard for the future. As part of this commitment, cross-progression features will be available on all platforms and gaming services with some of Ubisoft’s most anticipated titles, including Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Immortals Fenyx Rising and Riders Republic.Ubisoft+, play across multiple platforms, all with one subscription: UPLAY+ becomes Ubisoft+ which integrates a multi-platform model, starting with a beta version in the US in November on Amazon Luna and by the end of the year on Stadia. Players will be able to play on PC, Stadia and Amazon Luna, all with a single subscription.Partnership with Amazon Luna: As part of the Luna reveal, its cloud-gaming offer, Amazon announced that players will be able to access Ubisoft+ subscription through a dedicated channel.Partnership with Netflix on Assassin’s Creed brand: Netflix announced the preparation of series based on the Assassin’s Creed universe for its streaming platform.
Conference callUbisoft will hold a conference call today, Thursday October 29, 2020, at 6:15 p.m. Paris time/1:15 p.m. New York time.
The conference call can be accessed live and via replay by clicking on the following link:https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/w37wssrrContactsDisclaimer
This press release may contain estimated financial data, information on future projects and transactions and future financial results/performance. Such forward-looking data are provided for information purposes only. They are subject to market risks and uncertainties and may vary significantly compared with the actual results that will be published. The estimated financial data have not been audited by the Statutory Auditors. (Additional information is provided in the most recent Ubisoft Registration Document filed on June 5, 2020 with the French Financial Markets Authority (l’Autorité des Marchés Financiers)).About Ubisoft
Ubisoft is a leading creator, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and services, with a rich portfolio of world-renowned brands, including Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, For Honor, Just Dance, Watch Dogs®, and Tom Clancy’s video game series including Ghost Recon®, Rainbow Six and The Division. The teams throughout Ubisoft’s worldwide network of studios and business offices are committed to delivering original and memorable gaming experiences across all popular platforms, including consoles, mobile phones, tablets and PCs. For the 2019-20 fiscal year, Ubisoft generated net bookings of €1,534 million. To learn more, please visit: www.ubisoftgroup.com.© 2020 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Ubisoft and the Ubisoft logo are registered trademarks in the US and/or other countries.
APPENDICESDefinition of non-IFRS financial indicatorsNet bookings corresponds to the “Sales” indicator used prior to fiscal 2020-21 (i.e. sales excluding the impacts of applying IFRS 15).Player Recurring Investment (PRI) corresponds to sales of digital items, DLC, season passes, subscriptions and advertising.Non-IFRS operating income calculated based on net bookings corresponds to operating income less the following items:Stock-based compensation expense arising on free share plans, group savings plans and/or stock options.Depreciation of acquired intangible assets with indefinite useful lives.Non-operating income and expenses resulting from restructuring operations within the Group.Non-IFRS operating margin corresponds to non-IFRS operating income expressed as a percentage of net bookings. This ratio is an indicator of the Group’s financial performance.Non-IFRS net income corresponds to net income less the following items:The above-described deductions used to calculate non-IFRS operating income.Income and expenses arising on revaluations, carried out after the measurement period, of the potential variable consideration granted in relation to business combinations.OCEANE bonds’ interest expense recognized in accordance with IFRS9.The tax impacts on these adjustments.Non-IFRS attributable net income corresponds to non-IFRS net income attributable to owners of the parent.Non-IFRS diluted EPS corresponds to non-IFRS attributable net income divided by the weighted average number of shares after exercise of the rights attached to dilutive instruments.The adjusted cash flow statement includes:Non-IFRS cash flow from operations which comprises:The costs of internally developed software and external developments (presented under cash flows from investing activities in the IFRS cash flow statement) as these costs are an integral part of the Group’s operations.The restatement of impacts (after tax) related to the application of IFRS 15.The restatement of commitments related to leases due to the application of IFRS 16.Current and deferred taxes.Non-IFRS change in working capital requirement which includes movements in deferred taxes and restates the impacts (after tax) related to the application of IFRS 15, thus cancelling out the income or expenses presented in non-IFRS cash flow from operations.Non-IFRS cash flows from operating activities which includes:the costs of internal and external licenses development (presented under cash flows from investing activities in the IFRS cash flow statement and included in non-IFRS cash flow from operations in the adjusted cash flow statement);the restatement of lease commitments relating to the application of IFRS 16 presented under IFRS in cash flow from financing activities.Non-IFRS cash flows from investing activities which excludes the costs of internal and external licenses development that are presented under non-IFRS cash flow from operations.Free cash flow corresponds to cash flows from non-IFRS operating activities after cash inflows/outflows arising on the disposal/acquisition of other intangible assets and property, plant and equipment.Free cash flow before working capital requirement corresponds to cash flow from operations after cash inflows/outflows arising on (i) the disposal/acquisition of other intangible assets and property, plant and equipment and (ii) commitments related to leases recognized on the application of IFRS 16.Cash flow from non-IFRS financing activities, which excludes lease commitments relating to the application of IFRS16 presented in non-IFRS cash flow from operation.IFRS net cash/(debt) position corresponds to cash and cash equivalents less financial liabilities excluding derivatives.Non-IFRS net cash/(debt) position corresponds to the net cash/(debt) position as adjusted for commitments related to leases (IFRS 16).
Breakdown of net bookings by geographic region
*Ancillaries, etc.Title release schedule
3rd quarter (October – December 2020) EXTRACTS FROM THE CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS aT
SEPTEMBER 30, 2020
The Statutory Auditors have carried out a limited review of the consolidated financial statements. Their limited review report will be issued after their verification of the half-yearly report.Consolidated income statement (IFRS, extract from the accounts which have undergone a limited review by Statutory Auditors).
Reconciliation of IFRS Net income and non-IFRS Net incomeConsolidated balance sheet (IFRS, extract from the accounts which have undergone a limited review by Statutory Auditors)
Consolidated cash flow statement for comparison with other industry players
(non reviewed)Consolidated cash flow statement (IFRS, extract from the accounts which have undergone a limited review by Statutory Auditors)
1 Sales at constant exchange rates are calculated by applying to the data for the period under review the average exchange rates used for the same period of the previous fiscal year.
2 See the presentation published on Ubisoft’s website for further information on movements in the income and cash flow statement.
3 Based on the consolidated cash flow statement for comparison with other industry players (non reviewed)AttachmentUbisoft FY21 H1 Earnings
