APRIL reports first quarter sales of €208.4m, up 6.5%

(IFRS – €m)	Q1 2016	Q1 2015	Change	Q1 2015 LFL¹	Change
Consolidated sales	208.4	195.6	+6.5%	195.5	+6.6%
Brokerage commissions and fees	115.6	115.7	-0.1%	115.6	-
Insurance premiums	92.8	79.9	+16.1%	79.9	+16.1%

APRIL recorded consolidated sales of €208.4m for the first quarter of 2016, up 6.5% compared with the reported figures for Q1 2015.

The Group posted a €1.8m currency loss for the period, which mainly impacted South America and, to a lesser extent, Canada. These foreign exchange movements mostly affected Property & Casualty commissions. Conversely, Health & Personal Protection commissions benefited from a €1.8m consolidation gain mainly due to the late 2015 and early 2016 acquisitions of Avilog and GlobalHealth.

Like-for-like first quarter sales rose by 6.6%, with brokerage commissions stable at €115.6m and insurance premiums up 16.1% at €92.8m

APRIL Chairman and CEO Bruno Rousset commented:The trends published at this early stage in the year are in line with our expectations and show a consistent sales momentum. Our teams continue to implement our specialist tailored-product approach, in order to consolidate our positions on key markets such as P&C and loan insurance and to accelerate our development on priority target groups such as professionals and seniors. Each step is important, and this year is no exception: we will continue to work on our strategic growth levers in order to improve the performance of the group in the longer term.

Sales by division

(IFRS – €m)	Q1 2016	Q1 2015	Change	Q1 2015 LFL¹	Change
Health & Personal Protection	127.3	125.4	+1.5%	127.1	+0.2%
Commissions and fees	73.5	74.7	-1.5%	76.3	-3.7%
Insurance premiums	53.8	50.7	+5.9%	50.7	+5.9%
Property & Casualty	81.7	70.7	+15.5%	69.1	+18.3%
Commissions and fees	42.4	41.5	+2.2%	39.8	+6.6%
Insurance premiums	39.3	29.3	+34.3%	29.3	+34.2%
Intra-group eliminations	(0.6)	(0.6)	n/a	(0.6)	n/a

¹Pro forma or ‘like-for-like’ sales at constant consolidation scope and exchange rates: they take into account any acquisitions, disposals and changes in consolidation method, as well as exchange rate fluctuations, calculated on the basis of the prior year accounts converted using the exchange rate for the current year.

Changes by type of revenues are as follows:

Brokerage commissions in Health & Personal Protection at the end of March amounted to €73.5m, down 1.5% as reported compared to the same period last year. Excluding consolidation changes relating to the Avilog and GlobalHealth acquisitions, commissions were down 3.7%. As announced, reported growth in loan insurance and in health insurance for seniors, self-employed and SMEs has only partly offset the decrease recorded in individual employee health insurance linked to the extension of corporate group private health insurance. Group private health insurance continued to grow as planned over this initial period.

The return to growth in Property & Casualty commissions was confirmed: first quarter commissions came to €42.4m, up 2.2% based on reported data. Excluding the impact of exchange rate fluctuations, like-for-like sales increased by 6.6%. This increase was driven by strong performances in wholesale brokerage, particularly in substandard motor insurance, two-wheeled vehicle insurance and the professional range, activities in which APRIL is stepping up its development. In March, the Group reaffirmed its intention to expand in the specialist boat insurance market by acquiring the portfolio of Martinique-based broker Intercaraibes Assurances. The Group currently operates in this market in mainland France, Italy, Canada and the Caribbean region. Travel insurance and assistance operations were stable compared to the previous year.

The 5.9% increase in Health & Personal Protection insurance premiums reflects the ongoing momentum in this business, driven by the development of individual (seniors and self-employed) Health & Personal Protection and expatriate insurance portfolios. It is also related to the growth in group private health insurance portfolios generated by partnerships set up to meet the demand created by the extension of corporate group private health insurance.

Property & Casualty insurance premiums continue to rise, up €10.0m to €39.3m driven by the expansion of our legal protection business and growth in our highly reinsured P&C portfolios, particularly in corporate and affinity member operations.

Quarterly sales

(IFRS – €m)	2016	2015	Change	2015 LFL¹	Change
Q1	208.4	195.6	+6.5%	195.5	+6.6%
Q2	-	206.1	-	-	-
Q3	-	198.5	-	-	-
Q4	-	197.8	-	-	-
Total	-	798.0	-	-	-

Outlook:

At this stage of the year, given the fundamental changes affecting the French individual health insurance market, the Group still anticipates a decline in its full-year current EBIT which could range between 8% to 12% compared to 2015.
In the long term, the productivity gains achieved through the business model adaptation process already underway, combined with accelerated development in our key markets, notably through targeted investments, should lead to a gradual improvement in the Group’s financial performance.

Marc Le Doze, Group CFO, will be holding a conference call for financial analysts, investors, and the press this evening at 6.15 pm (French Time).

Dial in details: France - 0805 632 056 or 01 76 74 24 28 / United Kingdom - 0800 694 0257
International +44 (0) 1452 555 566
Please dial in a few minutes beforehand, in order to register, and give the following reference number: 9176 3415.

Contacts:

Analysts and investors
Sandrine Gallien: +33 (0)4 72 36 49 31 / +33 (0)6 20 26 06 24 - sandrine.gallien@april.com

Press
Samantha Druon: +33(0)4 72 00 46 56 – samantha.druon@insign.fr

Upcoming events:

28 April 2016: Annual General Meeting, Lyon
26 July 2016 after market close: H1 2016 consolidated sales
8 September 2016 after market close : 2016 Half year results

APRIL

26 April 2016