Negative Points

• Data as a Service and e-commerce segment revenue declined 11.2% to EUR156 million, with adjusted EBITDA down 43%.

• Adjusted EBITDA margin in the digital and dialogue media segment decreased by 2.3 percentage points to 11.9% due to product mix and higher minimum wages.

• Net debt increased to EUR996 million, and the bank leverage ratio rose to 2.6 times from 2.47 times year-over-year.

• Free cash flow adjusted remained negative at minus EUR1.9 million, in line with the prior year.

• Exceptional items increased to minus EUR9.5 million in Q2, mainly due to internal reorganizations.

• The German advertising market remains weak, with gross growth of only 1.9% in Q2 and 1.1% in H1.

• Classic out-of-home revenue declined 1% in H1, reflecting ongoing structural challenges.

• E-commerce revenue fell 10% due to low consumer spending, and the beauty segment faces margin pressure from channel mix and high customer acquisition costs.

• Statista's revenue decline is expected to continue through the year as the business model transition takes time.

• The share buyback program has been paused, with no plans to accelerate unless the share price drops significantly.

Q & A Highlights

Q: Can you provide an update on the business model change at Statista, and what is the impact on its revenue and margins? A: Udo Mueller (CEO) stated that the transition from a seat-based to a volume/token-based model is progressing as planned, though it takes time for clients to implement. This transition is causing a difficult year for revenue, particularly as the long-tail consumer demand declines. Christoph Vilanek (Interim CFO) added that initial tests with B2B customers converting to a tokenization model have shown total revenue remaining at similar levels, which is a positive proof of concept. He expects margins to stabilize at current levels for the next three to four quarters before ramping up again.

Q: How should we think about the margin performance in the Data-as-a-Service and E-commerce segment, and what is the outlook for 2027? A: Christoph Vilanek (Interim CFO) explained that Statista's margin is being impacted by the business model transition, but costs have been reduced. For the e-commerce business (Asam Beauty), the channel mix is shifting from high-margin TV sales to lower-margin retail and more expensive-to-acquire e-commerce customers, compounded by weak consumer spending. He expects a recovery from the current downtrend starting in the first half of 2027, with margins improving step by step, though potentially not to the levels seen two years ago.

Q: What are the current Q3 trends for the Out-of-Home (OOH) segment, and how is the FIFA World Cup affecting the phasing of revenue? A: Udo Mueller (CEO) clarified that the EUR12 million World Cup benefit in Q2 was not incremental "on top" money but was pulled forward from H2 budgets. Consequently, Q3 is expected to look softer than Q2, but the order book for Q4 shows positive development. The company remains confident in its full-year guidance, with underlying demand for OOH remaining positive.

Q: Can you elaborate on the product mix impact on margins in the Digital and Dialogue Media segment? A: Christoph Vilanek (Interim CFO) attributed the margin decline to two main factors: the international relocation of call center business to nearshore locations, which affects revenue and absolute margins, and the integration of the Ameveda acquisition, which is still in its early stages. In the Ranger business, the German fiber business is stable, but the Italian energy contract market is weak due to the macroeconomic environment.

Q: What is the status of the CFO search, and what is the expected leverage ratio by year-end? A: Udo Mueller (CEO) stated that the CFO search is in an advanced stage, with results expected within the next four weeks. Christoph Vilanek (Interim CFO) added that the leverage ratio is expected to be around 2.35x by year-end, slightly higher than the previous year, depending on the success of working capital improvements in Q4.

Q: Regarding the recent M&A speculation in the press, is there any update? A: Udo Mueller (CEO) declined to comment on the rumors, stating, "There is nothing we have to add now. There are rumors, but we are doing our job here and that's all we can say right now."

Q: Can you provide a breakdown of Statista's revenue between corporate and retail/long-tail customers? A: Christoph Vilanek (Interim CFO) declined to provide a specific breakdown, stating, "We are not planning to disclose the details and the breakdown because we would have to add lots of definitions on that. Please accept that we will not do that for the time being."

Q: What is the progress on the share buyback, and are there plans to accelerate it? A: Christoph Vilanek (Interim CFO) reported that EUR21 million has been spent so far, covering approximately 690,000 shares. He noted that while the company is not planning to continue aggressively, it has an obligation to review it. Further buybacks would only be executed if the share price dropped significantly below current levels.

Q: Can you comment on the CapEx trends across divisions and the reason for the increase in H1? A: Christoph Vilanek (Interim CFO) explained that the increase was due to a one-off real estate investment of EUR9.8 million for land near the headquarters in Cologne. He confirmed that total CapEx for the year is expected to be around EUR104 million, similar to 2025, with the OOH segment's CapEx remaining stable as digital conversion projects are planned on a 6-12 month roadmap.

Q: What is the status of the Ad Manager project, and what are the early results from the self-service tools? A: Udo Mueller (CEO) clarified that the full Ad Manager platform will not be ready before the end of next year. Currently, the company is testing two separate self-service tools: one for classic advertising (a simple web shop) and another for digital out-of-home, which was rolled out a few weeks ago. These are test environments and are separate from the main Ad Manager project, which is being developed by coding teams in the Czech Republic, New Zealand, and Spain.

For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript .