EQS-News: CEWE targets further growth in turnover and earnings in 2025

CEWE targets further growth in turnover and earnings in 2025

 

• Turnover increased by +6.7% to €832.8 million in 2024, EBIT rose to €86.1 million
• 16th consecutive dividend increase announced: Executive Board and Supervisory Board propose dividend of €2.85 per share for financial year 2024 (+9.6%)
• Strong results also planned for 2025: Turnover expected to increase to up to €865 million, EBIT to increase further to up to €92 million

 

Oldenburg/Frankfurt am Main, March 27, 2025. CEWE Stiftung & Co. KGaA (SDAX, ISIN: DE 0005403901) presented the 2024 results and the outlook for 2025 today at the annual financial press and analyst conference. The company concluded the 2024 financial year with new highs in revenue and earnings: Group revenue increased by 6.7% to €832.8 million (2023: €780.2 million) and the operating result (EBIT) of the CEWE Group rose to €86.1 million (2023: €83.9 million), a value at the upper end of the planned target corridor of €77 to €87 million. The dividend for the 2024 financial year is set to rise to €2.85 per share – an increase of 9.6% (previous year: €2.60). Subject to the approval of the Annual General Meeting, this will be the 16th consecutive dividend increase. CEWE thus continues to hold the second place among all listed German companies with a dividend that has continuously increased over so many years. "As a team, we look back proudly on a successful year 2024. Once again, we made millions of customers across Europe happy, especially during the Christmas season. In a challenging macroeconomic environment, we invested in our markets and inspired people to create and share high-quality photo products full of personal memories. Our strategic focus on innovation, brand strength, efficiency, and sustainability is paying off," explains Yvonne Rostock, CEO of CEWE Stiftung & Co. KGaA at today's annual financial press conference. "Beyond the immediate annual results, we have strategically and economically developed the company and ensured that the success story continued. We have advanced the internationalization of the group, developed new business areas, and collectively developed a cultural mindset within the CEWE Group. At the same time, we have successfully continued the transformation of the company into the age of artificial intelligence." CEWE also plans further growth for the 2025 financial year: Group revenue is expected to reach a value in the range of €835 to €865 million, and Group EBIT is expected to be in the corridor of €84 to €92 million.

 

Core business area of Photofinishing contributes to annual success

The traditional photofinishing peak season during the Christmas business has again significantly contributed to the annual success of the CEWE Group in 2024. Photo products, especially as Christmas gifts, hold a very high emotional value for many people. CEWE succeeded in converting the generally high volume of photos, mainly due to smartphone photography, into its own business growth in the past fiscal year: The total number of photos across all CEWE products increased by +2.9% to 2.46 billion (2023: 2.39 billion photos). The CEWE team once again managed to meet customer orders arriving later and closer to Christmas: Efficiency improvements in production, site expansions, and new printing and shipping technologies were successfully utilized. Thus, CEWE was able to repeatedly assert itself in a challenging macroeconomic environment characterized by recession, cost increases, and increasing regulation, thanks to the premium quality of its innovative products, the strong positioning of all CEWE brands, and substantial investments in the market. Revenue in the core business area of photofinishing increased significantly by +8.4% to 714.0 million euros in 2024 (photofinishing revenue 2023: 658.8 million euros). Operating profit (EBIT) in photofinishing rose pleasantly to 83.4 million euros (photofinishing EBIT 2023: 80.0 million euros). Many product and software innovations – such as the panoramic page in the CEWE PHOTOBOOK, many new photo gifts, the new editor in the ordering software, and the new passport photo app – have once again strengthened the company's position.

 

Commercial Online-Print succeeds with best price guarantee

In 2024, Commercial Online-Print (COP) showed a slight decline in turnover of -2.4% to 89.9 million euros (2023: 92.2 million euros), a better demand trend than the market for commercial print products as a whole. In the past financial year, COP has successfully integrated large-format printing and further expanded synergies with CEWE Group's Photofinishing business segment. COP is once again demonstrating its successfully lowered break-even threshold. Cost efficiency in production enables Commercial Online-Print to achieve a clearly positive EBIT of 3.4 million euros based on the turnover generated. Even in the pre-corona years, over 100 million euros in turnover led to a weaker result than today. The price-competitive environment in a declining market caused EBIT in the 2024 business year with -0.8 million euros to be slightly weaker than in the previous year (2023: €4.2 million).

 

Retailing remains well positioned

In line with its strategy, CEWE also actively reduced turnover in hardware retailing slightly to 30.8 million euros in 2024 (2023: 31.3 million euros; -1.5%). The development of earnings reflects the good positioning of CEWE's retail business: despite the slight decline in sales, the retail business segment was able to improve its contribution to Group EBIT by 0.2 million euros to 0.7 million euros in 2024 (2023: 0.5 million euros). In retailing, CEWE continues to focus on the business with photofinishing products (reported in the photofinishing segment) and deliberately continues to avoid less profitable trading business in the area of photo hardware (cameras and accessories).

 

Equity ratio, free cash flow and ROCE remain strong and solid

The equity ratio in 2024 has once again increased from the already very solid level of the previous year (31.12.2023: 58.4%) to its current level of 59.1%, thus underlining the fact that CEWE continues to be extremely stable. Free cash flow, which is normalised for accrual effects, reached a strong 86.0 million euros (normalized free cash flow 2023: 69.7 million euros). At 18.3%, return on capital employed (ROCE) remained at a strong level in 2024 (ROCE 2023: 18.8%). Excluding the increase in the cash position, which is included in capital employed in the ROCE calculation, return on capital employed even increased to 19.7% (on a comparable basis with the previous year).

 

CEWE wants to continue to grow: strong results are also planned for 2025

Group turnover is expected to increase by up to +4% in 2025 and is planned in the range of EUR 835 to 865 million. Group EBIT is expected to range between 84 and 92 million euros, EBT between 83.5 and 91.5 million euros and after-tax earnings between 58 and 63 million euros. In setting these targets, CEWE management aims for figures in the upper half of the ranges, with the lower end of the corridors reflecting primarily exogenous uncertainties that cannot be influenced by the company.

 

Dividends to rise for the 16th year in a row

At the Annual General Meeting, the Executive Board and Supervisory Board will propose an increase in the dividend to €2.85 per dividend-bearing share based on the results of the 2024 fiscal year (dividend for the 2023 fiscal year: €2.60) – an increase of 9.6%. Subject to the approval of the shareholders at the Annual General Meeting on June 4, 2025, the proposed dividend of €2.85 per share (based on the 2024 year-end closing price of €103.40) corresponds to a dividend yield of 2.8%. This is the 16th consecutive dividend increase and marks a new high. Based on the dividend study by Dividenden Adel, isf Institut and DSW (Deutsche Schutzvereinigung für Wertpapierbesitz), CEWE continues to rank second among the 611 listed German companies included in the survey which have  continuously increased their dividends.

 

Full year 2024 and targets for 2025

 

CEWE Group	Unit	2024 actual	2025 target	Change in %
Photos 1	bn. photos	2.46	2.46 to 2.53	0 % to +2 %
CEWE PHOTOBOOK	m. units	6.11	6.0 to 6.2	-1 % to +2 %
Investments 2	EUR m.	56.0	~ 65
Turnover	EUR m.	832.8	835 to 865	0 % to +4 %
EBIT	EUR m.	86.1	84 to 92	-2 % to +7 %
EBT 3	EUR m.	86.9	83.5 to 91.5	-4 % to +5 %
Earnings after tax 4	EUR m.	60.1	58 to 63	-4 % to +5 %
Earnings per share	EUR/share	8.64	8.32 to 9.12	-4 % to +6 %

 

The ranges of these targets for the business year 2024 reflect the uncertainties currently resulting from the increase in prices/inflation on the cost of sales and cost side and their potential effects on CEWE's business development.

 

1  The number of photos is the total amount of photos used to create CEWE photo products and includes all the photos used in added-value products (e.g. CEWE PHOTOBOOKS, CEWE CARDS, CEWE CALENDARS, CEWE WALL ART and other photo gifts).

2  Outflows of funds for investments in fixed and intangible assets, balanced by inflows of funds from the disposal of fixed and intangible assets; not including additional purchases and corporate acquisitions

3  Target for 2025: Excluding subsequent valuation of equity instruments

4  Target for 2025: Based on the normalised Group tax rate for the previous year

 

Rounding differences may occur. Exact values have always been used for percentage deviation calculations.

An overview of results for 2024

 

CEWE Business Segments	Unit	Q4 2023	Q4 2024	2023	2024
(1) Photofinishing
Photos	m. photos	901	944	2,387	2,455
CEWE PHOTOBOOK	m. units	2.47	2.50	6.05	6.11
Turnover	EUR m.	293.6	317.7	658.8	714.0
Turnover adjusted*	EUR m.	293.6	313.5	658.8	701.2
EBIT	EUR m.	78.2	78.6	80.0	83.4
Purchase price allocation effects	EUR m.	-1.0	-1.3	-3.5	-3.0
Special write-offs DeinDesign	EUR m.	---	-3.1	---	-3.1
Special expenses for software licenses	EUR m.	---	---	-0.5	---
EBIT before special effects	EUR m.	79.3	82.9	84.0	89.5
(2) Retail
Turnover	EUR m.	9.5	9.8	31.3	30.8
EBIT	EUR m.	0.9	0.9	0.5	0.7
(3) Commercial Online-Print
Turnover	EUR m.	25.9	25.7	92.2	89.9
EBIT	EUR m.	2.7	1.4	4.2	3.4
Purchase price allocation effects	EUR m.	-0.0	-0.0	-0.1	-0.1
EBIT before special effects	EUR m.	2.7	1.4	4.3	3.5
(4) Other
Turnover	EUR m.	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
EBIT	EUR m.	-0.2	-0.2	-0.8	-1.4
CEWE Group	Unit	Q4 2023	Q4 2024	2023	2024
Turnover	EUR m.	327.0	351.2	780.2	832.8
Turnover adjusted*	EUR m.	327.0	347.1	780.2	820.0
EBIT	EUR m.	81.6	80.6	83.9	86.1
Total special effects	EUR m.	-1.1	-4.3	-4.1	-6.2
EBIT before special effects	EUR m.	82.7	85.0	88.0	92.3
EBT	EUR m.	86.4	80.7	87.9	86.9

 

* without taking into account the (revenue-increasing but earnings-neutral) conversion of a retail partner supplied by CEWE to commission-based accounting

 

Rounding differences may occur. Exact values have always been used for percentage deviation calculations.

 

Notes to the "Earnings by Business Segment" chart

 

(1) Photofinishing:  Production and sale of photo products such as the CEWE PHOTOBOOK, calendars, greeting cards, wall art and individual (analogue and digital) photos as well as other photo products

(2) Retailing: Trading in photo hardware, such as cameras and lenses, in Norway, Sweden, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia

(3) Commercial online printing: Production and sale of commercial print products in the online printing portals of SAXOPRINT, viaprinto and LASERLINE

(4) Other: Structural and corporate costs, as well as the results from real estate ownership and investments, are shown in the Other business segment.

 

Should you have any queries, please contact:
Axel Weber (VP, Head of Investor Relations)
E-Mail: IR@cewe.de

 

 

Internet:  cewe-group.com , cewe.de , pixum.de , deindesign.de , whitewall.com , cheerz.com , saxoprint.de, viaprinto.de , laser-line.de

 

 

Financial schedule

(insofar as already scheduled)

 

15.05.2025 Publication of Q1 2025 Interim Statement

04.06.2025 CEWE Annual General Meeting 2025, Weser-Ems-Halle Oldenburg

12.06.2025 Warburg Highlights Conference, Hamburg

14.08.2025 Publication of H1 2025 Interim Report

27.08.2025 Montega Conference HIT, Hamburg

23.09.2025 Berenberg & Goldman Sachs German Corporate Conference 2025, Munich

24.09.2025 Baader Investment Conference 2025, Munich

13.11.2025 Publication Q3 2025 Interim Statement

24.11.2025 Deutsches Eigenkapitalforum 2025, Frankfurt

 

 

About CEWE:

The CEWE Group is Europe's leading photo service and online printing supplier.

From its beginnings in 1912, CEWE has progressed to become the leading photo service company for all those wanting to make more of their photos. This is mainly due to the much-awarded CEWE PHOTOBOOK, with about six million books being sold each year. Customers can purchase other personalised photo products under the brand names of CEWE, Cheerz, DeinDesign, Pixum and WhiteWall – and from many leading retailers in Europe. They are inspired to produce a variety of creative designs from their personal photos in these brand environments, entrusting the company with more than 2 billion photos every year.

The CEWE Group has also set up a highly efficient production system for advertising prints and business prints for the online printing market. Every year billions of high-quality printed products are delivered reliably to their purchasers through the SAXOPRINT, LASERLINE and viaprinto sales platforms.

The CEWE Group, through the founder family of Neumüller as an anchor shareholder, focuses on sustainable corporate management and has already received many awards for this effort:  economically sustainable in the long term; cooperative and fair in dealings with customers, employees and suppliers; socially responsible and protective of the environment and resources.

The CEWE Group has a staff of 4,000 employees and operates in 21 countries. CEWE is listed on the SDAX. More information is available at www.cewe-group.com.