FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - After a record year, Deutsche Borse is inviting its shareholders to exchange views this Tuesday (10:00 a.m.). The annual general meeting of the Dax group will again be hosted online. By amending the Articles of Association, the company wants its shareholders to grant it the right to hold future shareholder meetings virtually. A dividend increase from 3.20 euros to 3.60 euros per share will also be put to the vote.

In his speech published in advance, Group CEO Theodor Weimer reaffirmed his confidence in growth for 2023, saying that the bar was very high after the record year of 2022. "But after the strong start to the year, we are confident of reaching or even exceeding the upper end of the range if the tailwind continues."

The Executive Board expects net income of 4.5 billion to 4.7 billion euros in the current year, compared with around 4.4 billion euros in full-year 2022. In terms of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda), which most recently amounted to just over 2.5 billion euros, the target for the current year is 2.6 billion to 2.8 billion euros.

The planned acquisition of the Danish software provider Simcorp should provide an additional boost. "We want to achieve at least 50 percent of the shares plus one share (...). And we are happy to take significantly more," Weimer emphasized. "Our financing of just under four billion euros is designed in such a way that we can also handle a full tender of all shares."/ben/DP/jha