March 24, 2020
- Gregorio Marañón, chairman of the company, highlighted that ‘Logista has closed a very positive financial year, making 2019 the best year in the history of the company. It has improved results and has increased the strength of its balance sheet, respecting always the environmental sustainability’
- The Group continues to improve margins and profitability in all geographic areas
- Logista is consolidated among the listed companies that offer the highest dividend yield, paying a dividend of 1.18 euros per share
- The company's results during the first quarter of 2020 exceeded those of the previous year
Logista's Shareholders’ General Meeting, which held a quorum of more than 81%, although with only 0.04% of the share capital present in the room, has agreed today to distribute a dividend of 1.18 euros per share charged to the results of the 2019 financial year, 5.4% more than what was distributed in 2018. The distribution of 95% of the Net Profit obtained makes it the largest distribution of the company in its entire history.
Logista’s shareholders have also approved the Annual Accounts for the year, which reached a 5.1% increase in Net Profit up to 165 million euros.
Gregorio Marañón, chairman of the Board of Directors, stated during his speech to shareholders that ‘Logista has closed the best year in its history thanks to its financial strength and operational efficiency, which has allowed the company to improve results, increase the strength of its balance and strengthen environmental sustainability’.
Regarding this last point, he has noted the company's work in the sustainability field through its role as founder of the Spanish Group for Green Growth and its inclusion in the prestigious “A List” of the CDP organization, which highlights Logista's work in managing climate change and reducing CO2 emissions, being the only European distributor to achieve this recognition during four years in a row.
Iñigo Meirás, CEO of Logista whose appointment has been ratified in this session, underlined in his speech that ‘Logista, on the fifth anniversary of his return to the stock market, strengthens its leadership position in the distribution of tobacco as well as achieves important growths in the pharmaceutical and convenience products distribution’. He added that these growths have been translated into double-digit annual average increases in Economic Sales in these activities and explained that the company has also consolidated its position in the transport sector.
Regarding the performance in the year, the Company's Economic Sales have grown by 2.8% up to 1,149 million euros compared to the previous year, with increases in all businesses in Iberia and France and ‘in more than 20% in the distribution of convenience products in Italy ‘, as Meirás pointed out.
In addition, the CEO highlighted the measures carried out to adapt the costs structure to the activity. This is the case of France, which has restructured the networks of tobacco, convenience and other businesses, or the case of Spain, with the storage space extension for convenience and Pharma businesses. According to Meirás, ‘all these measures add to the company's constant effort in reorganizing transport routes and to the investment in technological developments that can achieve greater integration and synergies between the Group's different businesses’.
The CEO also highlighted that ‘because of the smooth running of the activity in all areas as well as of the efficiency improvements, the Operating Margin of the business increased again one more year’.
He also noted ‘the evolution during the first quarter of this year, which ended last December, has been very positive and increases have been achieved in the main figures of the income statement" and stressed that ‘the company will continue betting for innovation and working for the expansion of services to keep quality and operational efficiency in order to face the new challenges that might arise’.
Finally, on the current situation, he explained that ‘the main markets for the company are being affected by the pandemic, although the company continues operating, so far, without a major incidence and economic impact, although it is reasonable to think that this situation will get worse, without being able to quantify this impact today’.
A remote General Meeting and a more equal Board of Directors
The company has made available to shareholders the necessary resources to be able to vote electronically and follow the Meeting remotely, as a security measure due to Covid 19 situation. Gregorio Marañón, Logista’s chairman, started his speech highlighting that the company’s priority is the protection of the employees and thanking them for their work so that ‘Logista can be part of the solution’.
In addition, he stressed that the company's financial strength, its operational excellence, its deep knowledge of clients and the strong commitments of both all employees and a management team led by Iñigo Meirás, are the best tools to face the uncertain situation generated by the coronavirus pandemic.
There were also a few words of remembrance and gratitude to Luis Egido, who was CEO of Logista since the beginnings of the company and who passed away last October.
Following the inclusion and good governance values, the incorporation of four women with great professional careers to the Board of Directors was approved: Marie D´Wit, Lisa Gelpey, Pilar Platero and María Echenique. After the approval, Gregorio Marañón, whose appointment as director was also ratified in the Meeting, has showed his satisfaction of increasing the percentage of women on the Board up to 42%, since ‘by increasing diversity on the Board, we provide complementary and different perspectives, that will result in the creation of value for all Logista’s stakeholders.