RIO DE JANEIRO, May 8, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Estacio Participacoes S.A. – "Estacio" or the "Company" (BM&FBovespa: ESTC3; Bloomberg: ESTC3.BZ; Reuters: ESTC3.SA; OTCQX: ECPCY), one of Brazil's largest private higher education organizations in number of enrolled students, announces its first quarter 2015 (1Q15) results, compared to its first quarter 2014 (1Q14) results.
Estacio closed 1Q15 with a total student base of 527,900 students, 33.8% more than in 1Q14. Of these, 369,300 students are enrolled in on-campus (presence) courses, and 101,900 in distance learning programs. Recent acquisitions, completed over the past 12 months, added a further 56,700 students. If we exclude these acquisitions, compared to the same period last year the student base grew 19.4% organically.
By the end of March the number of students using FIES reached 132,600, meaning that at the end of 1Q15, FIES students amounted to 36.9% of our undergraduate on-campus student base. In spite of the problems and limitations of SisFIES (the FIES online system), registration with FIES continued throughout the month of April, and by April 30 we had 141,400 FIES students with signed contracts. A total of 20,300 new students were able to enroll in FIES (new enrollments) for this school semester.
One of the tools that has become hugely successful is PraValer financing, a partnership with Ideal Invest, which has become an interesting option for our students. To date, some 3,000 students have signed loan agreements with PraValer.
Net operating revenue reached R$722.3 million in 1Q15, a 34.2% increase compared to 1Q14, fundamentally the result of the increase in our student base over this period.
1Q15 EBITDA totaled R$195.9 million, a 51.4% improvement over the same period last year, with an EBITDA margin of 27.1%, representing a margin gain of 3.1 percentage points compared to 1Q14. These results are primarily the result of better cost and expense management, and an over 34% increase in net revenue.
Net income came to R$130.6 million in 1Q15, a 3.8% increase compared to 1Q14. This was impacted by financial results and an increase in the depreciation and amortization line, primarily due to amortization of goodwill from acquisitions completed in 2014.
In its constant search to expand its business, Estacio opened new units in Fortaleza, Salvador, Recife and Sao Paulo, in addition to its Venda Nova unit in Belo Horizonte, inaugurated in late 2014. Estacio continues to feed its pipeline of new courses and Greenfield protocols with the Ministry of Education and Culture (MEC).
Contact:
Press Office
Telephone: (21) 3311 -9880
E-mail: cintia.marin@estacio.br
Investor Relations
Telephone: (21) 3311-9700
E-mail: ri@estacio.br
Website: www.estacioparticipacoes.com.br
Twitter: http://twitter.com/estacio_ir
Facebook: www.facebook.com/EstacioRI
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SOURCE Estácio Participações S.A.