Appeninn Nyrt. The Board of Directors of Appeninn decided on the proposals of the General Meeting of Shareholders published on March 27, 2020, in those cases which are subject to a deadline or in which the business interests of the company require a decision to be taken as soon as possible. Accordingly, the Board of Directors has approved the company's financial statements for 2019 and has also received the authorisation to purchase treasury shares. The Board of Directors decided to submit the agenda items relating to remuneration and personnel changes to the first General Meeting following the end of the emergency situation. The focus of the company's activities last year was on the implementation of its growth strategy, which the company intends to pursue this year along updated strategic lines.

The company can buy its own shares

Due to the measures taken in connection with the emergency situation and the government decree that entered into force on 10 April 2020, the Annual General Meeting of Appeninn Plc cannot be held, instead the Board of Directors of the company is entitled to make decisions on the previously published agenda items. Following the decision of Appeninn Nyrt., the Board of Directors decided on those agenda items that were time-limited or commercially urgent, while the remaining items will be decided by a General Meeting of Shareholders to be convened at a later date. The company's Board of Directors approved the financial statements for 2019, the most notable of which is that the value of real estate assets owned by Appeninn Plc increased by 25 percent, from EUR 118 million to EUR 148 million, equivalent to approximately HUF 50 billion, and the company's overall result for 2019 exceeded EUR 10.2 million, or more than HUF 3.3 billion.

A decision was also taken on the dividend payment: as the company will continue to focus on dynamic growth in the coming years, the Board of Directors agreed to place the entire specific profit after tax in the retained earnings, which was also justified by the exceptional circumstances of the current global pandemic.The Board of Directors also decided on the authorisation to buy back treasury shares. Accordingly, Appeninn Plc has the possibility to buy back its own shares, which the company intends to use in the near future. In the opinion of the company's management, the acquisition of treasury shares can be seen as a vote of confidence in the future of Appeninn Plc and as a means to achieve the company's strategic goals. Under the terms of the decision, the Board of Directors will have the right to purchase treasury shares up to a maximum of €5% of the share capital over a period of 18 months, within a range of +/- €20% of the prevailing market price.

The focus of Appeninn Plc's activities in 2019 was on the implementation of its growth strategy. Among the company's key milestones in 2019 was the acquisition of Club Aliga, and in addition to identifying potential investment targets, it started to clean up its portfolio through the sale of properties outside its focus area. In addition, the company has issued bonds worth some HUF 20 billion under the Growth Bond Programme announced by the MNB, raising significant funds to implement its updated growth strategy.

According to its updated strategy, the company intends to place a strong emphasis on tourism development in the future: the real estate company plans to fully renovate Club Aliga and the Balatonfüred port, which was acquired earlier this year, and to develop hotels in both locations, which fit well with its business strategy. Through tourism development, Appeninn Nyrt. aims to participate in the development of the Balaton region into one of the tourism centres of Central Europe. The company has also set a new strategic direction to further emphasise the principles of value creation and value retention in its activities.

The current global conditions are also affecting the operations of Appeninn Plc, but currently the proportion of tenants who have had to close under government regulations is low. In addition, the company's current vacancy rate is 7 percent and the average tenure is 4.5 years. The company's tourism development is also unaffected by the current situation, as the investments will take several years, so that by the time they reach the profit-generating phase, Appeninn Plc expects tourism to recover. Appeninn Nyrt. has a significant liquidity reserve and is able to meet its financial obligations in a timely manner in the medium term, even with the expected temporary loss of revenue and restructuring. At the same time, the company is taking all precautions to protect its tenants and to help slow the spread of the outbreak and maintain continuity of operations.

Last year created the conditions for stable growth, which could be further boosted by an update of the growth strategy for the economy. In addition to the real estate market, Appeninn Plc also intends to be active in the capital market this year: it intends to take advantage of the opportunity to buy treasury shares as soon as possible, thus further strengthening shareholder value. Although the exceptional economic environment justifies increased caution and continuous assessment of the situation, Appeninn Nyrt. will be able to continue its growth as a well-capitalised company and, following the updated strategic directions, will also be able to record a significant increase in financial results.