PARIS & LONDON & NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Regulatory News:
Alain Rauscher and Mark Crosbie, co-founders of Antin Infrastructure Partners (Paris:ANTIN), declared:
“2021 was a milestone year for Antin, notably marked by our successful IPO in September. We continued to deliver outstanding returns to our fund investors while investment and exit activity was fully on track. We executed on our growth strategy with the launch of the Mid Cap and NextGen strategies, and we invested in our platform and talent to position the firm for the next growth phase. Our 2021 financial results were very robust, demonstrating continued top-line growth, best-in-class EBITDA margins and significant dividend distributions to our shareholders. We are confident that 2022 will be another exciting and strong year.”
2021 highlights
Fee-paying AUM up +14.4%, driven by €2.5bn fundraising across Mid Cap and NextGen
Revenue excluding catch-up fees up +17.8%
Strong investment performance with capital deployment and exit activity on track
Underlying EBITDA margin of 60%
Strong balance sheet following successful IPO with €393m in cash to support our growth
Proposed dividend of €0.11 per share; full year dividend payout ratio of ~90%(1)
Medium-term guidance remains unchanged
Strong AUM growth supported by fundraising and investment performance
AUM increased to €22.7bn, up +23.8%(2) in 2021, driven by fundraising and investment performance
Fee-paying AUM increased to €13.8bn, up +14.4% in 2021
Fundraising stood at €2.5bn across Mid Cap Fund I and NextGen Fund I
Strong investment performance with all Antin funds performing either on or ahead of plan
Investment and exit activity are on track
Total investments of €1.7bn (€3.3bn including co-investments), including Origis Energy (Flagship Fund IV), ERR European Rail Rent partnership (Mid Cap Fund I) and Pulsant (Mid Cap Fund I)
Flagship Fund IV ~60% invested and Mid Cap Fund I ~16% invested as of 31 December 2021. Including investment announced post closing of reporting period, Mid Cap Fund I is ~26% invested
Gross exits of €1.3bn (€1.6bn including co-investments), including Amedes (Flagship Fund II) and Almaviva (Flagship Fund III)
Robust top-line growth with ~95% of revenue from management fees
Total revenue increased by +0.5% from €179.6m to €180.6m; increase of +17.8% excluding 2020 management fee catch-up effects related to final closing of Flagship Fund IV
Management fees decreased by (2.7)% from €175.5m to €170.8m; increase of +14.5% excluding 2020 management fee catch-up effects related to final closing of Flagship Fund IV
Carried interest and investment income increased substantially from €2.4m to €7.2m, primarily due to the revaluation of Fund III-B investments held on balance sheet, as well as carried interest related to Flagship Fund II(3) and a gain realised on the transfer of carried interest related to Fund III-B(4)
Strong profitability with underlying EBITDA margin of 60%
Underlying EBITDA decreased by (17.9)% from €132.0m to €108.4m, notably due to the management fee catch-up of €26.4m recorded in 2020 and an increase in operating expenses recorded in 2021. Excluding the 2020 management fee catch-up, underlying EBITDA grew by +2.6%
Total operating expenses increased by +51.6% from €47.7m to €72.3m. Personnel expenses increased by +45.5%, primarily due to the hiring of 53 employees related to the launch of the Mid Cap and NextGen investment strategies and in anticipation of the continued scale-up of our Flagship Fund Series. Other operating expenses increased by +68.0% mainly due to professional services fees related to the execution of our growth plan
As a result of those effects, our underlying EBITDA margin decreased from 73% to 60%, consistent with the guidance provided at the time of the IPO
Underlying net income decreased by (19.7)% from €92.7m to €74.4m
Strong balance sheet
€393m in cash and cash equivalents to support growth plans
No financial debt following repayment of outstanding credit facilities in 2021
Dividend payout ratio of ~90%
Antin’s Board of Directors proposes a dividend of €0.11 per share for the remainder of 2021. Total dividend of €0.39 per share for 2021, including €0.28 per share already paid prior to the IPO
Dividend payout ratio of ~90% for full-year 2021 based on underlying net income(5)
Further advances on our ESG priorities
Strengthening of ESG governance framework and processes
Carbon reduction roadmap for all portfolio companies
Formalised diversity, equity, and inclusion policy
Medium-term guidance confirmed
Long-term growth above the infrastructure market, with Flagship Fund V target commitments of ~€10-11bn
Long-term EBITDA margins >70%
Majority of underlying profits to be distributed with the absolute quantum of dividends expected to grow over time
Implementation of a liquidity contract
Liquidity contract with BNP Paribas Exane starting on 25 March 2022, for a period of one year and tacitly renewable
Objective to improve the trading of Antin’s shares on the regulated market of Euronext Paris
Compliant with the Code of Conduct (Charte de Déontologie) issued by the French Financial Markets Association (Association Française des Marchés Financiers), recognised by the AMF (Autorité des Marchés Financiers)
Initial €2m allocated to the liquidity account
Agreement can be terminated at any time and without prior notice by Antin, and at any time by BNP Paribas Exane subject to one month’s notice
Situation in Russia/Ukraine
No direct and indirect exposure to Russia/Ukraine
No physical locations, no meaningful economic relations
No Russian or Ukrainian fund investors
Partners will donate more than €2m to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
Post-closing events
Exit of Roadchef (Flagship Fund II), the UK’s largest motorway service area operator announced on 3 March 2022. Flagship Fund II ~90% realised as of 24 March 2022 following exit of Roadchef
Investment in Lake State Railway (Mid Cap Fund I), a leading regional freight railroad in the US completed on 8 March 2022. Mid Cap Fund I ~26% invested
Today’s webcast presentation
Antin’s management will hold a webcast presentation today at 11:00am CET
To register for the webcast, please click on the following link: https://channel.royalcast.com/landingpage/antin-ip/20220324_1/
Notes
Proposed dividend of €19.2m and €48.1m paid in 2021 (total of €67.3m); calculated as a % of underlying net income of €74.4m; to be approved on 24 May 2022 at Annual Shareholders’ Meeting
Based on new calculation methodology as described on p.10
€0.9m carried interest revenue for Fund II related to a share of carried interest repurchased by Antin from an employee departing the firm
€0.6m carried interest revenue related to a gain on a share of carried interest in Fund III-B that was sold by Antin to its employees
Proposed dividend of €19.2m and €48.1m paid in 2021 (total of €67.3m); calculated as a % of underlying net income of €74.4m; to be approved on 24 May 2022 at Annual Shareholders’ Meeting
About Antin Infrastructure Partners
Antin Infrastructure Partners is a leading private equity firm focused on infrastructure. With €22.7bn in Assets under Management, Antin targets majority stakes in the energy and environment, telecom, transport and social infrastructure sectors. With a presence in Paris, London, New York, Singapore and Luxembourg, Antin employs over 160 professionals dedicated to growing, improving and transforming infrastructure businesses while delivering long-term value to portfolio companies and investors. Majority owned by its partners, Antin is listed on compartment A of the regulated market of Euronext Paris (Ticker: ANTIN – ISIN: FR0014005AL0)
Contacts
Shareholder Relations
Ludmilla Binet, Head of Shareholder Relations
Email: shareholderrelations@antin-ip.com
Media Contacts
Antin Infrastructure Partners
Nicolle Graugnard, Communication Director
Email: nicolle.graugnard@antin-ip.com
Brunswick
Email: antinip@brunswickgroup.com
Tristan Roquet Montegon +33 (0) 6 37 00 52 57
Gabriel Jabès +33 (0) 6 40 87 08 14