PARIS (Reuters) – JCDecaux announced a 2020 loss for the first time in its history on Thursday after the overseas communications group was hit hard by the coronavirus crisis.
The street advertising furniture specialist recorded a net loss of 604.6 million euros last year, compared to a net profit of 265.5 million euros in 2019, weighed by a total depreciation fee of 222, 3 million euros linked to the repercussions of the health crisis.
Its revenue declined 38.1% organically to 2.3 billion euros and adjusted operating margin fell 82.1% to 141.6 million euros.
Adjusted operating losses were € 575 million in 2020, after impairment charges, compared to a profit of € 384.9 million in 2019.
Jean-Charles Decaux, Chairman and Co-General Manager of JCDecaux, commented in 2020, the world’s number one outdoor advertising company, the most difficult year in its history since its inception in 1964. The group,
He added, “Looking at the results of 2020, the first year with a loss (…), we will propose at the General Assembly, which will be held on May 20, 2021, not to pay dividends in 2021.”
In the first quarter of 2021, JCDecaux expects an organic decrease in its adjusted turnover of around 40% due to the restrictive measures still in place in some large countries, particularly in the UK and Germany.
However, it expects a double-digit recovery in domestic advertising revenue in China (excluding Hong Kong) during this period.
(Blandin Hennault, edited by Jean-Stephan Bruce)
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