To assess whether VERBUND AG is suitable to issue hybrid bonds, we need to analyze its financial health, cash flow stability, leverage, and profitability using the provided data for the 2022 financial year: 1. **Profitability and Earnings**: - VERBUND reported massive revenue of €10.35 billion for 2022 (up significantly from €4.78 billion in 2021). - EBITDA for 2022 stood at a robust €3.16 billion, indicating extremely strong operational performance and high margins (~30.5%). - Net profit (Profit/Loss) for the year was €1.95 billion, representing excellent bottom-line profitability. 2. **Leverage and Debt Service Coverage**: - Total Financial Liabilities at the end of 2022 (entering 2023) were approximately €3.95 billion (€2.84 billion non-current + €1.11 billion current). - With Cash and Cash Equivalents of €409 million, Net Debt is roughly €3.54 billion. - The Net Debt to EBITDA ratio is around 1.12x. A ratio this low (well below the commonly accepted threshold of 3.0x - 4.0x) indicates that the company generates more than enough core earnings to handle its debt load. - The Interest Coverage Ratio (EBITDA / Interest Expense) is outstanding at approximately 31x (€3.16 billion / €101.7 million). This means the company can cover its interest obligations dozens of times over. 3. **Cash Flows**: - Operating cash flows were remarkably strong at €2.02 billion, demonstrating excellent liquidity and internal cash generation capabilities, which are essential for servicing the coupon payments of hybrid bonds. 4. **Capital Structure**: - The company's total equity stands at €8.32 billion against total assets of €19.16 billion, yielding a strong equity ratio of about 43.4%. **Conclusion**: VERBUND AG exhibits exceptional financial metrics across the board: outstanding profitability, immense cash flow generation, a strong balance sheet, and very low leverage. As a large utility with highly stable and substantial cash flows, it easily possesses the credit quality required to attract investors for subordinated debt instruments. The company is in a prime position to issue hybrid bonds to optimize its cost of capital. Strongly Suitable