Malta International Airport plc - Full-Year Results

On 22 February 2023, Malta International Airport plc published its Annual Report & Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2022.

Performance Overview

Total revenue surged by 85.6% to €88 million compared to €47.4 million in 2021, reflecting the continued post-pandemic recovery in passenger traffic. Despite the significant rebound in passenger movements, the revenue generated by MIA during 2022 is still 12.2% below the record of just over €100 million achieved in 2019 since the airport operator welcomed 5.85 million passengers in 2022 compared to 7.31 million in 2019. From an operating segment perspective, the ‘Airport’ segment generated €58.3 million in revenues in 2022 (2019: €70.8 million) representing 66% of total revenues whilst the ‘Retail & Property’ segment contributed €29.4 million in revenues (2019: €29.1 million).

Operating costs increased by 28.6% in 2022 to €44.5 million (2021: €34.6 million) in view of the higher level of business activity. As a result, the airport operator recorded an operating profit of €43.4 million (2021: €12.8 million, 2019: €54.4 million). Excluding depreciation and amortisation charges, EBITDA amounted to €54.9 million, which is more than double the EBITDA figure of €24.1 million recorded in 2021 but remained 13.1% below the record of €63.2 million generated in 2019. The EBITDA margin also improved considerably to 62.4% in 2022 compared to 50.8% in 2021, and is very close to the margin of 63.0% achieved in 2019.

After accounting for net finance costs amounting to €1.73 million, MIA reported a pre-tax profit of €41.8 million (2019: €52.6 million). The 2022 financial performance was also boosted by the €12 million tax credit awarded to MIA for the losses suffered during the Covid-19 pandemic, which resulted in a net profit of €38.9 million. Excluding the tax credit, adjusted net profit amounted to €26.9 million compared to €7.0 million in 2021 and the previous record profit of €33.9 million achieved in 2019.

The Statement of Financial Position shows that total assets increased by 17.5% to €285.1 million largely reflecting the surge in cash and cash equivalents including short-term investment securities which more than doubled to €68.7 million compared to €32.7 million as at the end of 2021. Meanwhile, total liabilities increased by 3.1% to €114.3 million as the Group remained without any borrowings and also ended the 2022 financial year in a net cash position even when including €54 million in lease liabilities. As a result, shareholders’ funds grew by 29.7% to €170.9 million.

Dividend

In the context of the significant improvement in the financial performance in 2022, the Board of Directors is recommending a final net dividend of €0.12 per share to be paid not later than 26 May 2023 to all shareholders as at close of trading on 4 April 2023. MIA had last paid a dividend in September 2019 which amounted to €0.03 per share and related to the interim net dividend for the 2019 financial year.

Infrastructural Investments

The Directors’ Report highlighted a number of infrastructural investments which commenced in 2022, including the relocation of the fuel station to pave way for the SkyParks 2 development, phase 3 of the cargo village project, and the Apron X project. In 2023, the Group initiated the €175 million 5-year investment programme aimed at transforming the airport campus and laying the groundwork for the terminal expansion.

Outlook

The Directors explained that airlines continue to operate in a challenging landscape and apart from industry-specific challenges, they are also likely to be impacted by the lower consumer confidence amid worsening macro-economic factors. In this context, pent-up demand is also expected to continue levelling off in 2023 and it is unlikely that the seat-load factor remains at the record levels observed in 2022. However, the Directors noted that recovery to pre-pandemic numbers has been better than expected and 2019 airport traffic figures are likely to be exceeded in 2025. MIA is expecting 6.3 million passenger movements in 2023, which would represent around 86% of 2019 traffic. The airport operator also reiterated its financial targets for the 2023 financial year. MIA expects to generate revenues of €97 million, EBITDA of €59 million, and net profit of €29 million.