NAXS Year-end Report 2018

NAXS AB (publ)

Year-end Report 2018

January-December 2018

  • Net profit/loss for the period amounted to MSEK 18,5 (40,7).

  • Earnings per share amounted to SEK 1.45 (2.91).

  • Net asset value amounted to MSEK 736 (SEK 61.81 per share) at December 31, 2018,
    compared to MSEK 821 (SEK 60.17 per share) at year-end 2017.

  • Net cash amounted to MSEK 261 (SEK 21.94 per share) at December 31, 2018,
    compared to MSEK 450 (SEK 32.97 per share) at year-end 2017.

  • The 2018 Annual General Meeting resolved to pay a dividend of 2.53 SEK per share for
    FY 2017.

  • An extraordinary general meeting held in August resolved to cancel 1,355,340
    repurchased shares held by the Company.

    Fourth quarter 2018
    • Net profit/loss for the quarter amounted to MSEK -3,7 (-2,7).

    • Earnings per share amounted to SEK -0.31 (-0.20).
    Distribution of profits

    The Board of Directors intends to make the level of the dividend to be proposed for the
    fiscal year 2018 dependent on the amount that may be distributed under the form of
    share repurchases during the first quarter of 2018.

    The Board of Directors proposes a dividend of maximum SEK 2.80/share for the fiscal year
    2018, corresponding to SEK 33,359,931 at December 31, 2018. The actual level of the
    dividend will be set as the difference between SEK 33,359,931 and the amount that has
    been distributed under the form of share repurchases during the period between January 1
    and March 31, 2019. The Board of Directors will announce the level of the proposed
    dividend ahead of the publication of the notice of the 2019 Annual General Meeting

    In addition, the Board of Directors proposes to the Annual General Meeting to vote on a
    continued share repurchase mandate.

    Comments by the CEO

    2018 was a particularly active year for NAXS.

    In March, we made a new direct investment, subscribing for shares in a
    new issue by Awilco Drilling, an offshore drilling operator listed on the
    Oslo stock exchange. NAXS subsequently added to this initial
    investment by acquiring shares on the market at several occasions,
    bringing the total investment in Awilco Drilling to SEK 26.7 by the end
    of 2018.

    In April, NAXS made a EUR 4m investment in Nordic Capital CV1, a
    continuation vehicle established by Nordic Capital, where its Fund VII had transferred the
    remaining 9 unlisted portfolio companies it held.

In June, we announced that NAXS had made a USD 5m commitment to JAB Global
Consumer Brand II. The fund co-invests with JAB Holding, a privately held group focused
on consumer goods and retail companies with premium brands. Notably, the fund provides
an exposure to recent transactions by JAB Holding, including the recently formed Keurig-Dr
Pepper beverage group and the Pret a Manger casual dining chain.

In November, we made a USD 3m investment in a in a new senior secured bond issued by
Jacktel AS, the Norwegian operator of a jack-up offshore accommodation vessel and a
wholly-owned subsidiary of Master Marine AS. Master Marine has been a NAXS portfolio
company since 2009, when it was acquired by Nordic Capital Fund VII.

Finally, NAXS actively repurchased shares throughout the year, buying back 1,723,126
shares representing 12,6% of the share capital.

NAXS saw its net asset value per share increase by 6,9% during 2018, despite the steep
decline in the financial markets during Q4 materially affecting the valuations our of listed
holdings at December 31, 2018.

At the end of 2018, NAXS had in excess of 35% of cash on its balance sheet, which leaves
the Company well-positioned to take advantage of potential opportunities that might arise
in what we expect to be a volatile environment.

Lennart Svantesson