The Booktopia Group Ltd (ASX: BKG) share price will be on watch today, after the online book retailer released its half-year results for FY21 (1HY21) this morning.
Here's a look at what the company has reported today.
Booktopia reports record first-half result
Booktopia reported a revenue increase of 51.1% to $112.6 million for the period.
The company shipped a record 4.2 million orders, compared to 3.2 million orders during the prior corresponding period. The average order value for 1H FY21 was $69.87.
The average annual spend for customers increased from $103.32 to $123.57.
Booktopia's underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) (adjusted for IPO and conversion of preference share costs) fired up 502.3% to $8 million.
The company advised that strong ongoing demand and increased distribution capacity supported its 1H FY21 results.
Commenting on Booktopia's performance, Chief Executive Officer Tony Nash said:
The demand we experienced from the beginning of the 2020 calendar year extended right through to Christmas, helping us to deliver the largest half-year revenue in the company's history. Our investment in expanding capacity and automation ensured we were able to continue to meet our customer promise despite the unparalleled growth in volumes.
Outlook
Noting the uncertainty that the coronavirus continues to cause the business environment, Booktopia provided a revised FY21 forecast.
The company is now expecting an FY21 revenue of $217.6 million, 7.9 million units shipped, and an underlying EBITDA of $12.9 million.
January and February 2021 have already delivered revenues in excess of those previously forecast. Booktopia also advised that its present database contains 5 million customers, with 2.3 million repeat customers.
Looking ahead, Mr Nash added that:
We will continue our growth strategy, investing in key areas of the business to cement our online market leadership and drive increased market share. This includes the continued expansion of our Publishing Services and Booktopia Publishing businesses.
The Booktopia share price has jumped 7.31% year-to-date and last closed at $2.79. The business has a current market capitalisation of $383.2 million and 137.4 million shares outstanding.
