DocMorris: Solid basis for sustainable, profitable growth

DocMorris AG / Key word(s): Half Year Results

17-Aug-2023 / 06:57 CET/CEST
Release of an ad hoc announcement pursuant to Art. 53 LR
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

Frauenfeld, 17 August 2023

Press release
Ad hoc announcement pursuant to Art. 53 LR

Half-year result 2023
Solid basis for sustainable, profitable growth

• Revenue and earnings within full-year guidance range
• Consistent focus on profitability: EBITDA (adjusted) improved by CHF 33.9 million
• Growth trend reversal in the second quarter of 2023
• Sale of Swiss business significantly strengthens balance sheet: Equity ratio rises to close to 50%
• E-prescription rollout accelerates significantly

DocMorris strengthened its basis for sustainable, profitable growth in the first half of the year. Following the consolidation of logistics in the new state-of-the-art distribution centre in Heerlen and the focused brand strategy, productivity and profitability as well as marketing efficiency continued to improve significantly. The gross margin increased by 5.5 percentage points to 21.6 per cent in the first half of the year compared to the same period last year. Adjusted EBITDA improved by CHF 33.9 million to minus CHF 20.8 million and is thus within the target range for the full year.

Inflection point reached: Revenue growth in the second quarter compared to the previous quarter
DocMorris achieved a 2 per cent revenue increase in the second quarter compared to the first quarter of 2023. The company has thus reached the inflection point in the first quarter and created a new starting position for profitable growth. In group currency, external revenue^[1] was CHF 252.7 million in the second quarter and CHF 501.4 million in the first half. After completing the focus on potential e-prescription customers in Germany, especially with a chronic medication need, the number of active customers[2] as of the end of June 2023 is 9.0 million.

The revenue and operating result of the Swiss business will no longer be consolidated from the date of sale to Medbase, a subsidiary of Migros. In Germany, the revenue reduction of 11.7 per cent in local currency in the second quarter and 17.4 per cent in the first half of the year reflects the optimisation of marketing expenses and the focus on more profitable revenues. In the Southern European marketplace business, revenue decreased by 14.9 per cent in local currency in the second quarter and by 16.3 per cent in the first half of the year.

Capital structure significantly strengthened and strategy secured
The successful completion of the sale of the Swiss Zur Rose business has provided DocMorris with close to CHF 300 million proceeds to date. The equity ratio increased significantly from 31.9 per cent as of 31 December 2022 to 48.9 per cent as of 30 June 2023. An earn-out component of CHF 47 million due in the second quarter of 2024 and the planned sale of the Swiss land and properties will further strengthen liquidity. At the same time, the implementation of the strategy is secured.

E-prescription rollout accelerates strongly – mandatory from January 2024
On 1 July 2023, the new e-prescription redemption channel using the electronic health card^[3] (eGK) was launched on time in Germany, thus starting the nationwide rollout process in the second half of 2023. This additional redemption channel – in addition to print out and app – strengthens the general acceptance of the e-prescription in medical practices and among patients. In July 2023 alone, more than 340,000 e-prescriptions[4] were filled, 38 per cent more than in the previous month.

For a broad use of e-prescriptions, non-discriminatory redemption channels must also be available for online pharmacies as of January 2024. This requires a digital equivalent to the physical eGK solution, which enables the e-prescription to be redeemed via an NFC-ready eGK without a PIN. A corresponding technical solution analogous to the physical eGK solution for local pharmacies is available. Close interactions are taking place with the relevant regulatory bodies and stakeholders so that the digital solution can be introduced in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Significantly improved digital customer experience
In the second quarter of 2023, DocMorris made significant improvements to its web shop and app. As a result, the company expects an increase in customer quality and higher conversion rates. E-prescription medication management was expanded to include reminders and automatic follow-up prescriptions, among other things. In addition, DocMorris expanded its core pharmacy offering. In July 2023, a long-tail assortment, based on its in-house technology, was added to the existing marketplace on the DocMorris healthcare ecosystem.

Outlook
DocMorris continues to focus in particular on its action plan to further strengthen the sustainable basis for profitability and future revenue growth. Regardless of the ramp-up speed of electronic prescriptions, management confirms its 2023 targets communicated in March:

• Return to revenue growth in the second half of the year following the streamlining of the customer base. For the full year, a mid-single-digit percentage decline in external revenue in local currencies.
• Improvement of adjusted EBITDA to between minus CHF 20 million and minus CHF 40 million.
• Capital expenditure of CHF 30 million to CHF 40 million.

DocMorris expects to break-even on adjusted EBITDA in 2024, excluding e-prescriptions. In the mid-term, an adjusted EBITDA margin of 8 per cent continues to be targeted.

The 2023 half-year report and the presentation are available on the website as a download here (corporate.docmorris.com | Investor Relations | Financial publications).

At 11 a.m. CEST today there will be a conference call in English for analysts and the media.

Speakers: Walter Hess (CEO), Marcel Ziwica (CFO), Madhu Nutakki (CTO)

To register for the conference call, please use this link:
https://webcast.meetyoo.de/reg/P1bCr3Qdt1Ku
After registration, participants will receive a confirmation e-mail with personal dial-in details.
Please dial in approx. 5 minutes before the conference call begins.

To follow the livestream, please use this link:
https://www.webcast-eqs.com/docmorris-2023-h1
The webcast can be viewed after the conference under the same link.

Investors and analyst contact
Dr. Daniel Grigat, Head of Investor Relations & Sustainability
Email: ir@zurrose.com, phone: +41 58 810 11 49

Media contact
Lisa Lüthi, Director Communications
Email: media@zurrose.com, phone: +41 52 724 08 14

Agenda

DocMorris
The Swiss-based DocMorris AG is a leading company in the fields of online pharmacy, marketplace and professional healthcare with strong brands in Germany and other European countries. As Germany's largest online pharmacy, it operates DocMorris, the best-known health platform. Deliveries are mainly from the highly automated logistics centre in Heerlen, the Netherlands, with a capacity of over 27 million parcels per year. In Spain and France, the company operates the leading marketplace for health and personal care products in Southern Europe. With its business model, DocMorris offers its patients, customers and partners a broad range of products and services. In doing so, DocMorris is pursuing its vision of creating a digital health ecosystem for everyone to manage their health in one click. The company was renamed from Zur Rose Group AG to DocMorris AG in May 2023 after the Swiss business was sold to Migros/Medbase. Excluding the Swiss business, about 2,200 employees in Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, France and Switzerland generated an external revenue of CHF 1,159 million serving around 10 million active customers in 2022. The shares of DocMorris AG are listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (securities number 4261528, ISIN CH0042615283, ticker DOCM). For further information, please visit corporate.docmorris.com.

^[1] External revenue consists of the consolidated revenue of DocMorris plus online revenues of pharmacies supplied by DocMorris, less the consolidated revenue from supplying them.

^[2] Customers supplied by DocMorris, either directly or through its partners.

^[3] The e-prescription is not stored on the eGK. The physical card only serves to authorise the pharmacy to retrieve the prescription data stored in the telematics infrastructure. E-prescriptions issued within the framework of video consultations can thus also be redeemed via this procedure.

^[4] Source: gematik