Warimpex Finanz- und Beteiligungs AG: results for the first three quarters of 2018:

Weak rouble dampens solid operational performance

Wien (pta006/30.11.2018/08:00 UTC+1) * Exchange rate losses and lower hotel revenues following partial portfolio sale in prior-year period lead to loss of EUR 6.5 million for the period
* Increase in revenues from the rental of office properties to EUR 11.3 million due to completion in St. Petersburg in prior year and acquisitions in Krakow and Budapest
* Ogrodowa office building in Łódź opened in October 2018, Mogilska office building in Krakow to be completed in Q1 2019

For Warimpex Finanz- und Beteiligungs AG, the third quarter of the current financial year was characterised by a solid operational performance and a further reduction of finance expenses. However, this positive development was dampened by currency effects in Russia.

During the first nine months of the financial year, revenues in the Hotels segment declined from
EUR 24.6 million to EUR 9.7 million due to the lower number of rooms resulting from the sale of part of the portfolio in the spring of 2017. By contrast, revenues from the rental of office properties rose from EUR 9.6 million to EUR 11.3 million, largely due to the completion of the fully occupied Bykovskaya multi-use building at AIRPORTCITY St. Petersburg at the end of May 2017 and the acquisition of two fully occupied office buildings - Mogilska 41 in Krakow and B52 in Budapest. Overall, consolidated revenues declined from EUR 35.5 million to EUR 21.6 million. Due to the lower earnings contribution from hotel revenues and the lack of gains from the disposal of properties in the current financial year, EBITDA also fell from EUR 31.8 million to EUR 4.4 million. EBIT dropped from EUR 45.5 million to EUR 4.2 million. While the financial result including joint ventures improved from minus EUR 11.5 million to minus EUR 10.6 million, it was negatively impacted by non-cash exchange rate losses in the amount of EUR 8.6 million. Finance expenses saw a significant reduction, going from EUR 9.3 million to EUR 5.4 million. All in all, this led to a loss for the period of EUR 6.5 million in the first three quarters of 2018 (1-9 2017: profit of EUR 34.2 million).

Strengthening the financial base and building up the property portfolio
After buying back all of the convertible bonds and redeeming the majority of the outstanding bonds, Warimpex took advantage of the prevailing low interest rate levels to optimise its financing structure at the holding level and successfully placed a seven-year bond in September. As a result of this step, the company is in an optimal financial position to act rapidly and flexibly when interesting investment opportunities arise. This will also help Warimpex to complete its ongoing development projects, quickly get new projects up and running, and acquire cash flow-generating assets with potential for the future. The goal is to rapidly build up the property portfolio again following the partial portfolio sale and to strengthen the company's earning potential.

Completions, planned development projects, and acquisitions support growth target
After the end of the reporting period, Warimpex took important steps towards rapidly building up the property portfolio again with two office projects in Poland: At the beginning of October, the Ogrodowa office building in Łódź was opened. The state-of-the-art office building offers 28,000 square metres of space and is located directly in the city centre near the Manufaktura shopping centre. The first tenants have already moved in. Negotiations are currently under way with prospective tenants for the remaining space, so occupancy is expected to be about 60 per cent by the end of the year. Lease agreements have also been concluded for
60 per cent of the office space at the Mogilska 43 office building in Krakow. The building shell for the office property with 12,000 square metres of space was finished at the beginning of November, and the building is scheduled to be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2019.

Development projects that are currently still in the planning phase but will quickly be made ready for the start of construction include the Chopin office building in Krakow with 21,000 square metres of space as well as four office properties with up to 73,000 square metres of net floor space in Białystok. In addition, Warimpex has promising property reserves at AIRPORTCITY St. Petersburg and has started the planning activities for Avior Tower 1.

Another focus for the company is on cash flow-generating acquisitions. In this context, the fully occupied Mogilska 41 office building in Krakow was purchased in December 2017. In May 2018, this was followed by the B52 office building in Budapest, which is also fully let out. Their earnings contributions can already be seen in the revenues from the rental of office properties.

Outlook
Along with the ongoing activities in the core CEE markets of Poland and Hungary, Warimpex is also evaluating options in Western Europe and definitely sees potential for acquisitions here - in one case, negotiations are already at an advanced stage. The company considers 2018 to be a transition year following the sale of part of its portfolio last year and expects a significant increase in revenues and an improvement in gross income for 2019 following the opening of the Ogrodowa office building in Łódź this year.

Key financial figures for the first three quarters of 2018 at a glance:

(end)

Emitter:	Warimpex Finanz- und Beteiligungs AG Floridsdorfer Hauptstrasse 1 1210 Wien Austria
Contact Person:	Daniel Folian
Phone:	+43 1 310 55 00
E-Mail:	investor.relations@warimpex.com
Website:	www.warimpex.com
ISIN(s):	AT0000827209 (Share)
Stock Exchange(s):	Vienna Stock Exchange (Official Trade)
Other Stock Exchanges:	Warsaw