1st May 2019 08:39
LONDON (Alliance News) - Office space provider IWG PLC said on Wednesday it saw revenue growth in the first quarter of 2019 on strong sales activity which led to improved occupancy.
For the three months to the end of March, revenue increased by 13% to GBP658.3 million from GBP583.9 million for the same period a year before, with strong open centre revenue growth and currency tailwinds from the US dollar and some Asia Pacific currencies.
On a constant currency basis, group revenue rose by 11%, with open centre revenue rising by 15%.
Occupancy improved year-on-year by 4.2 percentage points on a like-for-like basis to 75.4%.
IWG saw double-digit growth in the Americas, Asia Pacific and Europe, Middle East and Africa regions. Specifically, the group saw a strong performance in France, Germany and Spain, while network rationalisation led to a small decline in revenue from the UK.
During the first quarter, IWG added 55 new locations to its global network, with a net growth capital investment of GBP43.3 million, down from the GBP63.4 million net investment for 46 locations the prior year.
The new locations contribute 1.5 million square feet of additional space, bringing IWG's total network at March 31 to 57.9 million square feet and 3,311 locations.
The company as at March 31 had a net debt of GBP534.1 million, up from GBP460.8 million at the end of 2018.
IWG said the first-quarter performance provided a "good start" to the year and was in line with expectations.
Shares in IWG were flat at 340.00 pence on Wednesday.
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