Mix Telematics reports massive jump in full-year profit

JSE-listed fleet and mobile asset management solutions group MiX Telematics has published its financial results for the full-year, ended March 2018.

The group recorded total revenue of R1.7 billion, and ended the fiscal year with a subscriber base of over 676,000 subscribers, giving it what it called a ‘dominant market position’.

Operating profit for the year was up 56% to R215 million, while net profit climbed to R181.2 million compared to R121.4 million in fiscal 2017 (up 49.3%).

Profit for the year included a net foreign exchange loss of R5.1 million before tax. During fiscal 2017, a net foreign exchange gain of R1.5 million was recognised, it said.

Earnings per diluted ordinary share were 32 South African cents, compared to 19 South African cents in fiscal 2017. For fiscal 2018, the calculation was based on diluted weighted average ordinary shares in issue of 574.0 million, compared to 631.8 million diluted weighted average ordinary shares in issue during fiscal 2017.

The diluted weighted average ordinary shares in issue during fiscal 2018 were lower than in fiscal 2017, due to the weighted average impact of share repurchases, it said.

The group recorded the following highlights for its latest fiscal year, ended March 2018:

• Subscription revenue of R1.435 billion, up 19% year over year on a constant currency basis;
• Net subscriber additions of over 54,800;
• Operating profit of R215 million, up 56% year over year;
• Adjusted EBITDA of R442 million, up 47% year over year and ahead of guidance;
• Adjusted EBITDA margin of 25.8%, up from 19.6% in fiscal 2017;
• Net cash from operating activities of R353 million.

“We were very pleased with our fourth quarter results, which capped off another strong year for MiX. During fiscal 2018, we made significant progress toward achieving our long-term adjusted EBITDA margin target of 30% plus as we expanded our margin by over 600 basis points to 25.8%.

“This was largely due to 19% subscription revenue growth on a constant currency basis,” said Stefan Joselowitz, Chief Executive Officer of MiX Telematics.

“The strong performance was driven by the continued growth in our premium fleet subscriptions globally, improvements in ARPU and ongoing operating leverage in the business.”

Looking forward, Joselowitz said that the company has entered fiscal 2019 with “great momentum”, and remains  confident in its ability to achieve its long-term goals “given our strong pipeline and ability to further enhance margin accretion across the business”.

The group said it was targeting revenues of between R1.83 billion and R1.86 for the 2019 financial year, which would represent revenue growth of 6.8% to 8.6% compared to fiscal 2018. On a constant currency basis, this would represent revenue growth of 9.1% to 10.9%, it said.

Read: Mix Telematics reports strong second quarter