Hellenic Petroleum - Q4 strong ops performance, weaker margins

Hellenic Petroleum reported Q4 adjusted EBITDA of €170m, a 20.9% decrease y-o-y, 7.7% below our Q417 estimates. This reduction was primarily due to lower benchmark margins partly offset by strong operational performance with refining utilisation at 111% (input over nominal capacity), exports (+12%) and a 14% increase in domestic marketing net sales driven by aviation and bunkering. FY17 adjusted EBITDA growth was strong at +14% with record production (15Mt) and sales (16.1Mt). Our last published valuation, using a mix of 2018e P/E, EV/EBITDA and DCF metrics, stands at €9.3/share.