UPDATE 2-Euronext beats profit expectations, earnings from growth projects disappoint
* Two growth initiatives will not deliver 20 mln euro targetrevenue in 2019
* To announce new growth initiative in spring
* Euronext planning for a hard Brexit- CEO
* Euronext still looking for deals- CEO
(Adds CEO comments on financial targets, shares, details)
By Noor Zainab Hussain and Huw Jones
Nov 12 (Reuters) - Euronext's acquisition of theIrish Stock Exchange and a higher number of companies listinghelped the pan-European exchange beat quarterly profitestimates, although it warned some of its recent growthinitiatives had failed.
Revenue from both listings and cash trading rose in whatEuronext, which operates bourses in Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels,London, Lisbon and Dublin, called an environment of persistentlow volatility.
However, it said on Monday that two initiatives - tradingproduct Euronext Synapse and an indices partnership withMorningstar - would not generate the expected 20 million eurosof incremental revenue next year, part of a total 55 millioneuro target.
"Migration of liquidity to those new platforms has not beenas efficient and as effective as anticipated. We prefer toinform the market that those revenues that had been anticipatedfor 2019 will not be there," Chief Executive Officer St?(C)phaneBoujnah told reporters on a call.
Euronext unveiled a set of financial targets in 2016, sayingit would improve technology, cut costs and grow sales in the2015-2019 period.
As a result of trimming costs since its own share listingin 2014, Boujnah said Euronext had reached its 2019 target forboth cost savings and EBITDA margin one year early, and wouldannounce a new strategic plan for the coming years.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation(EBITDA) rose 26.4 percent to 87.8 million euros ($99.2 million)during the third quarter, compared to analyst expectations of82.5 million euros in a company supplied consensus estimate. Revenue in the same period rose 17.2 percent to 150.9million euros, despite the low volatility.
Volatility is an important driver of trading volumes acrossa range of asset classes but was relatively subdued in thequarter, compared with earlier in the year.
Boujnah said Euronext was making contingency plans shouldBritain crash out of the European Union without a deal, addingthat he was also looking for opportunities to diversify thecompany's activities away from share trading.
He said that the company had liquidity of around 700 millioneuros and could also raise debt to make acquisitions ifnecessary.
Euronext's shares were 1.59 percent lower at 0945 GMT,reversing an earlier gain.
($1 = 0.8850 euros)
(Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; Editing bySunil Nair, Gopakumar Warrier and Kirsten Donovan)
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