Good morning, everyone, from the headquarters in Vienna. Today we are here to present the first 365 days of EuroTeleSites. So we are speaking today about the Q4 results and also about the first full year today. I'm here with Ivo and Lars, you already know them, and I will hand over right now to Ivo to guide us through the presentation.
Thank you, Moritz. To be precise, we have 465 days because we had 100 days in 2023, but we are pleased to report the results for the first full year, full financial year, and we are pleased that we are showing to you today a very robust performance in 2024 with an increase of 9.8% revenue growth versus the previous year, and thanks to the complete team of EuroTeleSites, all of our employees for this achievement, which we could not have done without them. The success is attributed to operational excellence and efficient cost management, especially driven by four factors. First is the complete rollout of the new sites requested by our anchor tenant. Second is a very solid third-party tenant engagement. Fourth is the indexation according to our lease agreement. And third and fourth is the actual one-off effect, which we'll speak a little more in detail later stage.
What you can see from this slide, we had rolled out 220 sites. Nine were actually a small M&A transaction in North Macedonia where we purchased from our anchor tenant. And out of the 229 sites, we have finished the year with 172 net adds, which the split is 50/50 greenfields and rooftops, which resulted with 13,637 total sites. Coming to the third-party tenants, we are very pleased to report that we have reached 224 new onboarded for 2024. This is, for us, a very important segment. We are pleased to see that other telcos, not just our anchor tenant, A1 Telekom Austria Group, are seeing EuroTeleSites as an infrastructure provider for them. And this is what we will be focusing on the years to come. The CapEx for 2024 was around 20% of the revenue, which 33% went for the growth CapEx .
And I will spend a little more details on the next slides. Revenue guidance for 2024 was 5%. And as I said at the beginning, we have exceeded that by quite a lot, almost a double. Leverage, pleased to report, that went down to 6.2 times where we started the year when we did the spinoff and listed in the Vienna Stock Exchange with a 7.3. Challenges, these are the same similar challenges that our whole infrastructure providers, our industry and peers are being faced with: general price increase and expenses. But we are happy to say that in 2024, we were able to manage with them very well. Next, please. Coming a little more into the numbers, EUR 270 million of total revenue, EUR 151 million of EBITDA after lease, EUR 55 million of CapEx , and sites total is 13,637 with a tenancy ratio of 1.24.
Just a kind reminder, we only show tenancy of MNOs, not non-MNOs. Next, please. So in a little more detail, this is where you can see the performance from quarter to quarter. And of course, the difference from December 2023 till December 2024. The number of net adds is over here shown. We're on the left side where we have 172 net adds. And on the right side, you can see the split from the anchor tenant and the third-party tenant. And if you see that we have 396 total, when you subtract 172, you will see the numbers of actual third-party growth that we achieved. If we go to the next slide, I would like to spend a little more time on the CapEx split.
So this is the view that I hope you're familiar with, that we are reporting quarter over quarter how the CapEx is being spent, invested. We see 20% of CapEx from the revenue. On the large column where it says 2024 as reported, you see that the red bottom is the 22% of the rollout for growth CapEx . Yet 67% is the mandatory upgrade, and 11% out of the EUR 55.2 million is in the maintenance. But we have tried to make a little business view in order to show that part of the CapEx that we invested in the mandatory upgrades is actually for growth. Allow me to explain a little bit. We always invest in new sites when the order comes. If there is no order, we do not roll out new sites.
For 2024, the order was of 220 new sites, which I'm happy to report that we achieved that. If we have additional CapEx , which we see a potential of a third party to come on our sites, and if our sites are not prepared for that, then we allocate additional CapEx in order to prepare those sites. And if you see this red and white 11% right above the 22% of CapEx , this is what actually happens. On existing sites that were not ready for a third-party tenant, we invested additional CapEx to make them ready and to onboard the third-party tenant. And that shows that the 47% of actual mandatory upgrades is according to our agreement that we have with the anchor tenant. With this, we make efficient, we try to allocate the resources strategically.
As you can see, based on this allocation, we have been able to achieve solid performance. A little bit on the maintenance CapEx , we also have some power supplies that we have purchased in Bulgaria and Serbia. We have mentioned that we have a BSS platform, Sitetracker that we are going to go live in Q2 or Q3 of this year. That was also capitalized and part of this EUR 55.2 million. Next slide, please. I believe with this, we can just show you again this slide that the revenue, 60% comes from Austria, our largest market, same with the EBITDA after lease. Then the rest of the countries are split sort of equally. We continue to develop in this way. Again, congratulations to all of the teams that have been working diligently in all of our footprint for achieving these results.
With this, I will give the floor to my colleague Lars for the financial details.
Thank you very much, Ivo. As Moritz has mentioned, good morning from my side as well. We will talk about two aspects, talking about the financials. The first one is the full year 2024, the first one, full 365 days that we have covered as a new company, and secondly, also, of course, the fourth quarter. Allow me, before we look into the numbers, to mention the fact that we've just received from our auditors the unqualified audit opinion, so the first year has a clean audit, as you can define it, and secondly, what you can also see in the details available online is that our balance sheet has increased beyond EUR 2 billion, whereas the additional net adds that Ivo mentioned, of course, are also reflected in the revaluation of our assets in that sense that we can see that they are value creating also on our asset list.
Having said so, let's briefly walk through the numbers. Ivo has mentioned EUR 270 million revenues generated in 2024, which is an increase of 9.8%. We had some minor one-time effects in Q3 and Q4 2024, namely that we have closed some of the projects and also have priced and actually invoiced some of the projects, which is good news. So it's a cleanup of the past, also reaching beyond the spinoff date. And having in mind that this one-time effect summing up to EUR 4 million would then adjusted, lead to an increase of revenues by 8.1%. And you remember our last conference call, we mentioned that in the guidance for the revenue growth 2024, we mentioned 5%, but we also mentioned that we will likely exceed it. So having said so, here are the actual numbers.
I think, as Ivo mentioned, we can be very happy and glad to see that the business is growing in that perspective. This leads to an EBITDA after leases of 151 million EUR in 2024, which is an increase of 12.8% coming from the pro forma 2023. You all remember that for the year 2023, we, of course, only had a few weeks and months of operations. The number you can see is just for information. It's an estimation comparison of 2023 full year with then the first-time actuals in 2024. Having said so, we generated a free cash flow from day one, which was very important for our business model. But having said that, in 2024, we generated 96 million EUR of free cash flow by the end of the year. The status that you can see here is the calculation of the EBITDA minus the CapEx .
This brings us actually to the point that is also important to you, to potential investors, to analysts, and also to our colleagues from Moody's and Fitch. Our leverage has been decreasing accordingly. You remember that we wanted to achieve five times in the midterm. I think we are very well on track because we started at the year end 2023 with a leverage of 7.3x . We have now seen in the actuals 2024 a leverage ratio of 6.2x , which is, I think, exactly on track, even slightly overachieving our first expectations. Since we've already received a few questions, what are the most important topics that we also would like to report today is you talking about the leverage. Of course, you know that we started with a huge debt of around EUR 1 billion.
And having said that, we are still burdened by EUR 54 million of interest payments every year. Talking about 2024, we have tried to optimize this. So the first thing is that we have a portion, 50% of our debt is floating. So we are profiting from the lower interest rates that we see in the market. But we have done two things to help to release the interest burden slightly. First of all, we have done a prepayment of the expected free cash flow 2024 at an earlier stage, which was possible due to the fact that we have submitted some of the RCF during the year, which helped us to significantly actually lower the interest payments by approximately EUR 700,000. And secondly, we have done a refinancing of a portion of our loan to a private placement with better conditions.
This, to give you a first glance into the guidance, is, of course, something that we keep on tracking. And we, of course, always look for good and best options for EuroTeleSites also in 2025. Having said this, Moritz, let's briefly walk to the quarters. You can here see the revenues quarter to quarter. We started in Q1 with EUR 63.9 million and ended with EUR 71.4 million. You especially can see a slight increase in Q3 and Q4 driven by the one-time effects that I've mentioned. And what is also important to mention is that on the EBITDA after lease margin, you can see a reduction, which is exactly the topic Ivo mentioned. So especially in the Austrian market, the land leases, of course, are indexed. And those indexations, you can see here in these numbers, which lead to a slight decrease.
Secondly, if we look at the net cash flow from operations minus CapEx paid, you can see, and that's not a big surprise, until Q4, a slight reduction because until the year end, we tried to push as much projects through as possible. And therefore, of course, we pay more for the construction that has been finalized until year end. Having said so, let me allow a quick view into our share price on the next slide. I think we can be very happy, and thanks to our main and core shareholders, América Móvil and ÖBAG, for the support, but also for potential new shareholders, for some of you who have been investing into our company, into our solid and long-lasting, stable business model. We have talked to approximately 70 investors last year and hopefully also to some of you, and if not, please let us know.
Anytime, there will be roadshows also in the year 2025. Important to mention is that our share price has increased by 29% if you compare only the year 2024. If you look until now, until today, so the 12th of February 2025, it even has increased by 55%, which is a huge increase, which is even overarching the analyst estimations that we have received last year. And that was also improved over the year. We are happy that Moody's and Fitch have maintained throughout the year their rating for us. And therefore, we are very optimistic. You know that we are in reach now to get a market capitalization of almost EUR one billion. We're very close to the EUR one billion. And just talking about 2024, we have gained EUR 178 million of market capitalization. Having said so, let's briefly look into the guidance. Let's start with the guidance 2024.
This is what you already know, what you have seen. This was our target for 2024. And to tick the box, you can see that we have achieved it. So we talked about the revenue, CapEx as well. We matched most, very close to the 20%, slightly above even. The annual result was, as promised, used fully for debt reduction to also release a little bit of interest payments. And the investment grade rating was maintained. Beyond that, I think it's important to mention, and Ivo has mentioned it also, we are, of course, in the second year of operations. And I think we are very happy that the team has been established over the last few months and we're fully set and working full steam on those projects.
At the same time, we, of course, try to optimize and improve procedures to be very efficient on the cost side, also on the OpEx side. You can see that we're even with the growth, we're very stable. One of the big digitalization projects that are ongoing is the mentioned Sitetracker. So it's a digital cloud solution that helps us to maintain our almost 14,000 assets much more smooth, much more efficient, and also customer-friendly because our customers will be able to use this platform as well. So we're on track here. That's a very good example. Another example that I can give you, we have done a little insourcing projects in Serbia and Slovenia where we build up a small finance team instead of getting it from the outside resource. And therewith, we have grown our own team for lower cost with a better quality.
So that's also just one example to let you know that we're constantly working actually to be as efficient as possible. And I think there we don't have to hide because the overall company is steered with only approximately 200 people all around, including a small service center. And I think that's quite efficient. Also, if we look at the EBITDA margin and the EBITDA after lease margin, which are quite high and which we kept and maintained throughout the year. Having said so, I'm heading back or handing back, sorry, to Ivo, who will give us a quick guidance for the year 2025, please.
Thank you, Lars. From the operational guidance, we have over 200 sites that we will have to build in 2025, microsites. We hope that decommissioning and relocations of the new sites for 2025 will be less than 2024.
Of course, the third-party revenue is our main focus. We have strong targets for our footprint. We believe that we are in a very good position to achieve and overachieve those. We will continue with our ESG strategy and the preparation for the CSRD compliance and continuation of the Sitetracker system. On the financial guide, we are stable. We continue with the guidance of 4% growth in 2025 versus 2024. The CapEx to the revenue are consistent with the 20%, and the annual results should be that we continue with the debt reduction to achieve the midterm targets that we have shared with you. Of course, the investment ratings from Moody's and Fitch are something that are very important here to us, and that is why the business and the budget plan was done in order to keep the positive investment ratings from both houses.
On the financial guidance, on the midterm, we stay with the revenue growth on 3%-5% CAGR. And we keep the very high level of margins on EBITDA and EBITDA after lease. On the average of the CapEx , we said that 20% of the revenue is also something that will be in the midterm. This is with mandatory upgrades versus the growth CapEx . And again, when we receive the orders for new sites that we will build, we are happy to show that 2025 is also going to be a solid growth year for us. No dividend commitment in the near future in order to reach the leverage of five times. Allow me at the end, before we go to the Q&A, to express my gratitude from my side to all our investors, to all the people who are on the call for the trust and the confidence in our team. I hope the solid results in 2024 are a testament to the skills and capabilities of
Thank you so much. Ivo and Lars, maybe a brief overview about the events. You can see we will publish the results in the Q1 results in April 25. Annual General Meeting is planned in June. Half-Year Report will be published in July, and Q3 report will be available in October. As you know, we are always happy for getting together with you, so please feel free to reach out myself, and of course, we are participating in roadshows and conferences.
What is already planned is a virtual roadshow next week. And we will be in Frankfurt and Zurich, of course, and much more to come. And just to be clear, you see the question mark on your screen. So in case you would like to raise a question, please feel free to enter them. We already have the first questions. The first one was regarding the interest expense. Just to be transparent, but I think Lars already covered that. So I wouldn't go into the detail about that. Then we have one question. I will read it out aloud so you can understand it. I would love to know if CapEx will continue to be 20% of sales in 2026 and 2027 also. I forgot how long we are obliged to invest and how does it take down towards maintenance CapEx of 3%.
I can answer that.
The target is to stay with the 20%. Just for reminding, we are obliged to invest in the mandatory upgrades for the first five years. I can share that by end of 2025, in the smaller markets, we will be achieving the mandatory upgrades. So we'll be close to zero, and then in Bulgaria, we'll be around 50% of what we need to invest in the next four years, then the largest market, Austria and Croatia, will be the only ones left that probably will take according to the initial plan, but overall, we are on a good track, and that is why, as I mentioned in the beginning, any additional CapEx that we have, we first try to see whether we can invest it for existing sites that are required, requested by a third party.
If that's not the case, then we allocate that CapEx for the mandatory upgrades in order to achieve the obligation sooner than five years.
Many thanks, Ivo. Coming to the next question. Thank you for the presentation. Three questions from my side. I will start with question by question so that it's easier to follow. First question, what is the impact of the EUR 2 million one-off revenues on EBITDA after lease? The EUR 2 million one-off revenues has a one-to-one impact also on the EBITDA after leases. Many thanks. The second question, how many of your markets do you expect the rental fees paid by the anchor tenant to be indexed? There you know. All of the markets have the same MLA contract, 3% cap or 85% of that. Yes. Thank you.
The third question: Do you usually carry out a larger maintenance of sites throughout the year, always in the fourth quarter?
I believe this is a seasonal question because at the beginning of the year, when we start getting their permits, it takes a little longer from market to market, six to nine months. And that's why when we see when the permits arrive, whether it's a simple upgrade, simple maintenance, or a new rollout, then it's when we see the actual lot of the work happening on the second half of the year.
Thank you so much, Ivo. Then another question which we received: Why would the overachievement of revenue guidance in 2024 lead to a lowering of guidance for 2025 and midterm?
I think if we look at the 2024 guidance that we originally gave, which was 5%, and we now see the results more than 9% or adjusted by the one-time effect more than 8%, it's clear that we have overachieved a certain amount of growth already in 2024, and this needs to be the basis, of course, for the assumption for 2025, so that's why we are, I think, stable, but also optimistic for 2025, considering that 2024 was very successful on the revenue growth.
Thank you, Lars, and I see currently one more question. At which level of leverage would you consider a different capital allocation than debt reduction? For which purpose would you then use the annual result, M&A share buyback dividends, and in which order priority? That's a good question.
Also looking a little bit ahead, I think, as Ivo mentioned for the guidance midterm, also beyond 2025, our main target is really to deleverage. And we have proven that we successfully overachieved the deleveraging for the 2024 year, reaching 6.2 times. And thereafter, of course, we are focusing on building and growing the business, developing the company further. And whatever is net result at the end, of course, gives us some freedom to decide what to do. Overall, the financing aspects are bound until 2028, except the loan part, which we can reduce earlier. So as I mentioned, we are always looking for the best option with the lowest interest rates. And whatever happens beyond, of course, our core shareholders, as well as the availability of those amounts needs to be proven first. So give us a little bit more time.
We said from the beginning of the spinoff that for the first four years, we don't want to commit to dividend payments. We don't want to do M&A. And having said so, we are still in this corridor to develop the company in that direction. Very positive, as I mentioned. But at the same time, I think it's too early to make any prediction. But the points that you mentioned, of course, are all potential usage of extra net earnings or net income that we generate over the years.
Many thanks, Lars. So I see right now one more question. Can you explain the Q4 lease cost impact? Do you not accrue the CPI impact throughout the year?
Yes, we do accrue the CPI impact throughout the year and regularly the year.
In the case that you see Q4, the leases, you can see those extra effects that was the finalization of the projects beyond the spinoff. So the indexation that we had to do on the Austrian market, also reaching to some of the landlords, because in Austria, we need to pass through the indexation also on the rent side. And that's why you see some special effects that were not predictable before because we were working down those requests. And that's why it's not accrued because it was not known in the full amount.
Thank you, Lars. Thank you also for your interest for the whole audience. For right now, I don't see any further questions. Just in case you have any further questions, please just reach out and we are happy to answer them. Thanks a lot for joining and we see us again in April. Thank you.
Thank you.