Gigaset said that it recorded a 14 percent annual increase in revenues in the third quarter to EUR 57.6 million, and EBITDA lifted to EUR 5.0 million from 4.9 million. The company took counter-measures in a year challenged by the coronavirus pandemic, and said it reaped the benefits of its actions in the quarter. 

Revenues in the phone business showed a strong increase of 30 percent compared to the prior year, to EUR 44.0 million. The smartphone business increased by 12.1 percent, while the Smart Home contributed revenues of EUR 0.4 million, slightly below EUR 0.7 million in Q3 last year. The Professional division recorded sales down to EUR 9.5 million, compared to EUR 12.7 million in the same period the prior year. 

Despite the turnaround compared to the first half of the year, the company said it ended the period with negative equity of EUR 2.6 million. This is due to a write off the book value of its 15 percent stake in the Gigaset Mobile Pte Ltd joint venture with Goldin Fund. As there appears no possibility of recovering the venture, the EUR 7.7 million was written off entirely and the impairment recognised on equity. 

The company did not give a specific outlook for 2020 citing the uncertainty of current events. It continues to expect a decline in key figures compared to the previous year, it said. 

Revenues for the first nine months of the year dropped to EUR 133.5 million from EUR 157.5 million a year earlier, and the net result moved to a loss of EUR 10.6 million versus a profit of EUR 0.4 million. The company ended the period with cash and equivalents of EUR 25.8 million, after negative free cash flow of EUR 9.5 million in the nine months.