COLOGNE (dpa-AFX) - After accelerated growth at the beginning of the year, the outdoor advertising specialist Stroer wants to step up a gear. The MDax company announced in Koln on Wednesday that sales growth in the second quarter should be one to two percentage points higher than between January and the end of March. The JCDecaux competitor is excluding exchange rate effects and acquisitions. "Organic growth for out-of-home advertising should remain at the high level of the first quarter," commented Co-CEO Christian Schmalzl according to the press release. The manager is hoping for a boost from the European Football Championship.

In the first quarter, revenue increased by eleven percent to 453.4 million euros, with organic growth of nine percent. Once again, the digital out-of-home (DOoH) business was the main driver. Overall, the Out-of-Home segment grew organically by 17.4%, exceeding the Management Board's own target for the first quarter.

Adjusted for special effects, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose by almost 12% to EUR 108.4 million. Stroer's consolidated net income and operating profit thus developed slightly better than analysts had expected on average. Adjusted for special effects, the Group earned 12.5 million euros after 8.9 million in the same period last year.

Meanwhile, the Executive Board confirmed the annual targets. According to previous statements, organic sales growth in 2024 should be significantly higher than the previous year's figure of 7.5%. Adjusted operating earnings are expected to increase at around the same level as in the previous year. Stroer had reported 568.8 million euros here in 2023./ngu/zb/he