Brunel International N.V.: promising performance in Q4
Amsterdam, 28 February 2014
Key points Q4 2013
- Revenue up 4% to EUR 340 million
- Gross margin at 18.7%, up from 17.9%
- EBIT up by 46% to EUR 22.8 million

Key points FY 2013
- Revenue up 4% to EUR 1,283 million and gross profit up by 3% to EUR 231 million
- Gross margin stable at 18%
- EBIT up 3% to EUR 72 million
- Net profit up 12% to EUR 49.9 million
- Proposed dividend EUR 1.10 per share (2012: EUR 1.00 per share)
- New board members proposed

Q4 2013 results
Revenue
In Q4 2013 Brunel achieved EUR 340 million revenue, an increase of 4% compared to Q4 2012. The main revenue driver is the Energy Division which achieved a 24% revenue increase compared to the same period last year. Driven by a strong quarter for the Finance business line, revenue in The Netherlands increased by 8%, whereas Brunel Germany increased by 4%. As expected as a result of the completion of some major projects in Australia in Q1 2013, revenue in the Projects division deceased by 46%.

Compared to 2012, full year 2013 revenue increased by 4% to EUR 1,283 million. The Energy Division is the key contributor to this revenue increase, with a growth of 28%, a true global growth. Germany increased its revenue by 10%, whereas The Netherlands' revenue decreased by 1% despite a growth in average headcount of 1%. Following the completed projects, the Projects' Division decreased its full year revenue by 49%.

Due to a depreciating Australian and US dollar against the Euro, the growth in constant currency is 8% year-on-year.

Gross Profit
Q4 2013 gross profit increased driven by the 0.8ppt gross margin increase and the revenue increase to EUR 64 million, an increase of 9%, again mainly driven by the growth in the Energy Division and a higher gross margin in all divisions except The Netherlands. The gross margin increase is mainly due to a change in the mix.

Year-on-year the gross margin development is relatively flat with a slight decrease of 0.1ppt, driving the gross profit to increase by 3% to EUR 231 million.

Operating Costs
Full year operating costs have increased by 3% to EUR 158 million in 2013, mainly as a result of continued investments in our organisation to fuel our growth, leading to increased staff costs.

EBIT
The Q-on-Q EBIT development increased by 46% to EUR 23 million. This is mainly driven by the leveraging effect of the growing revenue in the Energy Division and the decreased overhead costs compared to Q4 2012. The decrease in overhead costs is partly due to the absence of one offs in Q4 2013.

Full 2013 EBIT increased by 3% to EUR 72 million at a relatively stable EBIT margin of 5.6%, driven by the full year revenue increase.

Outlook for 2014
We expect continued growth in revenue and profitability. We will provide a more detailed outlook with the presentation of our Q1 results.

Jan Arie van Barneveld, CEO of Brunel International N.V.: "In 2013 Brunel has reached again a record year in terms of revenue and profitability. Both in the global Energy business as well as in the difficult European market we were able to grow. Also in The Netherlands we achieved a nice growth in Q4. We have been able to strengthen our organisation and continued to build our global IT platform, fuelling the growth and enabling further future development. I am delighted that we were able to expand our Board of Directors entirely from within our own ranks. The performance in this transitional year, especially Q3 and Q4, is very promising for the near future ."

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