Bastei Lübbe AG: Preliminary Group EBITDA lower than expected

Ad hoc disclosure in accordance with section 17 MAR

Bastei Lübbe AG: Preliminary Group EBITDA lower than expected

Cologne, 23 June 2017. While preparing the consolidated financial statements for the 2016/2017 financial year, it became apparent today that EBITDA will be at approx. EUR 5 million according to provisional calculations, significantly below the expected amount of EUR 13 million to EUR 15 million in the Group. This decline is due to many reasons. The "Book" and "Retail" segments failed to meet targets in the fourth quarter of 2016/2017, resulting in the earnings contribution being EUR 3 million lower. In addition, the final purchase price allocation carried out as part of the majority investment in the Buchpartner GmbH resulted in an increase in material expenses of EUR 0.5 million from the discovery of hidden reserves in the acquired inventories. Overall this resulted in a negative non-cash one-time item of around EUR 1.5 million. However, the main element of EBITDA being under expectations is attributable to a changed assessment of the value of capitalised royalties, which led to an extraordinary burden of EUR 4.1 million. The two last-mentioned facts are predominantly one-time effects and are not cash flow relevant.

The consolidated financial statements for the 2016/2017 financial year, including an outlook for 2017/2018, will be published on 31 July 2017 as a result of a significant increase of work in the annual financial audit. The publication of the financial statements was originally planned for 29 June 2017.

The Management Board still considers the prospects for the current 2017/2018 financial year to be positive.