Published 2024-05-16 05:30
Checkin.com Group (STO:CHECK) reports organic growth and strengthened profitability despite weak underlying volumes.
The report in brief:
Q1 2024 (vs Q1 2023):
CEO Letter from Quarterly Report
We started the new year with a revenue that, although it has grown organically since last year, is still significantly lower than the previous quarter, foremost driven by lower volumes in the important travel segment. In the previous quarterly report, we did expect lower usage during major parts of the first quarter, but it is only to acknowledge that volumes have been low during all three of the first months of the year.
At the same time as the year has begun weak in terms of volumes, the underlying operations have continued to take important steps, and I maintain that in many ways, we are on a new level as a company. The new commercial cooperations we have in the pipeline are on a different scale than previously and several of our most important cooperations have strengthened significantly. I am convinced that the focus on the absolute largest customers in general and within the travel segment in particular is the right way long-term even though it means volatility between individual quarters before we reach a critical mass of customers of similar size. At the same time as the strategy we have chosen right now has increased our dependency on individual customers and their usage, we feel confident with this phase and the leverage it provides when volumes eventually go up.
The financial target to maximize the sum of revenue growth per share and EBITDA margin remains, as does our ambition to exceed 80% on a yearly basis. Here it is worth noting that we, in spite of the head wind in terms of volumes during Q1, continued to strengthen our profitability and build net cash. EBITDA strengthens to MSEK 4.8 with a margin of 23%. Together with the revenue growth per share the first quarter sums up to 36%, but the underlying efficiency and the solid cost base should result in a nice profitability leverage when volumes increase.
The weaker volumes we have seen during Q1 from the travel segment can be attributed to both a generally weaker season and to the fact that our solution for preventing third-party bookings has worked better than expected, thereby reducing this type of bookings. Even though this has meant a negative effect on the volumes in the quarter, I am sure that the fact that the software performs well and creates significant long-term value for our customers is something positive. The operational focus is now to continue widening the usage to all types of bookings, a project that has rather gained momentum with the confidence generated by the successes in third-party bookings. The collaboration has also attracted attention from other industry players, which has led to us currently being in commercial discussions with a handful of international airlines. As we add more customers of similar size, growth should increase and the volatility between quarters should decrease.
When it comes to Enterprise customers we have high hopes not only in the travel segment but have during the quarter advanced our positions in several other segments, and I believe we have a good chance to add several transformative customers during the year. We have also continued developing the cooperation with the large Swedish fintech and initiated a joint long-term project that should significantly broaden their use of our software. I have become even more convinced that if handled correctly, this customer should not only become a substantial revenue driver, but also increase our chances of acquiring more customers among the largest financial players, including both so called fintechs and more traditional banks.
In summary, the organization has taken several strategically important steps during Q1 and continued developing Checkin.com as a partner to the absolute largest Enterprise customers. The remainder of the year will show if our thesis is right and that the volatility is outweighed by the upside when the breakthrough finally occurs. This, of course, remains to be seen, but we will continue to make the decisions we believe are right for our long-term growth.
Kristoffer Cassel
CEO and founder, Checkin.com Group
The full quarterly report is now published and available on:
https://group.checkin.com/investors/reports/
Webcast (Swedish)
Investors, analysts and journalists are invited to a webcast 2024-05-16 08:30 CEST where the company’s CEO and CFO will present the report, followed by a Q&A session. The presentation is available through this link:
https://www.finwire.tv/webcast/checkin-com/q1-2024/
An English version of the webcast will be published on the company’s website later today.
For further information, please contact:
Jonas Köpniwsky, Head of Communications Checkin.com Group, [email protected]
This information is information that Checkin.com Group is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication through the agency of the contact person set out above, at 07.30 CEST on 16 May 2024.
Certified Adviser
Checkin.com Group’s Certified Adviser is Carnegie Investment Bank AB (publ).
About Checkin.com Group
Checkin.com Group creates shareholder value through capital efficient growth achieved by strong organic growth and strategic acquisitions. The Group’s advanced technologies and innovations offers a unique end to end solution that reshapes how end users checkin with products and brands online. The comprehensive framework gathers multiple hyper specialized technologies that covers every aspect of an end user’s checkin experience.
The company has its headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, but operates and recruits globally to attract world-leading talent across the globe.
Checkin.com Group’s share is since 2021 listed on Nasdaq First North Growth Market under the trading symbol "CHECK”.
For more information about the company visit: https://group.checkin.com/investors/