$EVD (+4,24%) CTS-Eventim: Yesterday's figures 🚀

The event organizer and ticket marketer CTS Eventim accelerated its growth in the second quarter.

CTS benefited from a strong ticket business. However, the event sector also grew with the start of the festival and open-air season. The Munich-based company is therefore more confident about the rest of the year.

In the second quarter, revenue increased by more than a fifth to just under 794 million euros, as CTS announced on Thursday. The company was thus able to almost double its growth compared to the first quarter. The ticket business grew by 28.5 percent. Three of the five best-selling events came from other European countries and South America, including the Italian rap superstar Ultimo and the South American reggae stars Natiruts, it said. Preparations for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, for which CTS acts as a ticket service provider, were also successful during the quarter.

The live business, the largest revenue driver, grew by 19.7 percent - with Bruce Springsteen in Spain as a highlight and the Rock am Ring, Rock im Park, Hurricane, Southside and Nova Rock festivals. CTS also reported "very good" advance festival sales for the coming year.

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose by 23.3 percent to 110 million euros. The figures exceeded analysts' expectations. Below the line, CTS earned 57.7 million euros, compared to 41.7 million a year earlier.

CTS Eventim raised its earnings forecast for 2024 and now expects a "significant" increase in adjusted operating profit. Previously, the company had forecast a 'moderate' increase. Many summer shows, open airs and various festivals are taking place in the third quarter and will therefore provide further positive impetus in the live segment, it said. In addition, the acquired See Tickets has been fully consolidated since the beginning of June.

CTS Eventim strong after raised outlook

The profit target raised by CTS Eventim brought the shares of the event organizer and ticket marketer to a record high on Thursday. It jumped to 91.15 euros shortly after the start of trading.

It then traded slightly lower via XETRA, rising 7.46 percent to 88.60 euros, but remained a top performer among the 50 MDAX-companies. At the same time, the mid-cap index rose only moderately. In a year-on-year comparison, the share has performed best so far. The share price has currently gained 42 percent, while the MDAX has fallen by around 8 percent in the same period.

Analyst Annick Maas from Bernstein Research was impressed by the strong increase in revenue and operating profit in the second quarter and the higher forecast. For 2024, CTS Eventim now expects a "significant" increase in adjusted operating profit, after previously forecasting a "moderate" increase.

The company has "clearly exceeded" market expectations, Maas wrote. With her price target of EUR 95, she still sees some potential. She also refers to the pricing of CTS, the FanSale division launched in Germany in January, where tickets can be sold from fan to fan, and potential takeovers.

JPMorgan-Analyst Lara Simpson spoke of "another strong quarter" and a "continued reassuring development at CTS, which points to a healthy pipeline of business opportunities and further strong earnings momentum going forward"

Source: finanzen.net