Malta International Airport plc - Quarterly Update

On 15 May 2023, Malta International Airport plc published a Quarterly Update providing information about its financial performance in Q1 2023.

Revenue surged by 75% to €18.9 million compared to the same period in 2022, largely driven by the strong passenger movement figures in the first quarter of 2023 totalling 1.25 million, which also surpassed the previous record of 1.20 million passenger movements for the first quarter in 2019. Indeed, revenue in Q1 2023 was also 21.7% higher than the previous Q1 record of €15.6 million in 2019.

On the expenditure side, total operating costs amounted to €12.3 million. Excluding the depreciation charge of €2.94 million, EBITDA stood at €9.60 million compared to €4.46 million in Q1 2022 and €7.23 million in Q1 2019. The EBITDA margin also improved to 50.7% compared to 41.1% in Q1 2022 and 46.5% recorded in Q1 2019.

After accounting for net finance costs of €0.21 million and tax charges of €2.28 million, MIA reported a net profit for Q1 2023 of €4.17 million, compared to €0.70 million in Q1 2022 and €2.87 million in Q1 2019.

Meanwhile, in terms of financial position, MIA remained free from any bank borrowings whilst cash and cash equivalents increased by a further 8.2% to €74.3 million compared to €68.7 million as at the end of 2022, despite the company’s commitment to continue investing heavily in its facilities and infrastructure. In fact, during the first three months of 2023, MIA’s capital expenditure amounted to €2.7 million which includes works on the construction of Apron X, the expansion of the customs area, and rehabilitation works on Apron 9.

In conclusion, MIA noted the encouraging traffic figures in the first four months of the year leaves it confident to deliver its forecast of 6.3 million passenger movements by the end of the year. MIA’s financial targets for the 2023 financial year set in January included revenues of €97 million (2019: €100.2 million), EBITDA of €59 million (2019: €63.2 million), and net profit of €29 million (2019: €33.9 million).

MIA explained that the coming months will continue to be characterised by works across the airport campus as the company gradually realises projects from its €175 million investment plan.