Cicor Technologies (CICN) H2 2023 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Record FY 2023 sales of CHF 389.9M, up 24.5%, included 11.1% organic growth; orders rose 11.4% to CHF 399.8M and book-to-bill was 1.03.

• Record EBITDA rose 39.8% to CHF 45.1M, with margin expanding to 11.6%; improvements reflected acquisition synergies, operational measures and product mix.

• Strategic target markets represented 84.3% of sales, up from 82.1% in 2022; 2024 growth is expected to continue, subject to FX and demand headwinds.

Financial highlights

• FY 2023 sales rose 24.5% to CHF 389.9M; organic growth was 11.1%, acquisitions contributed 16.4% (CHF 51.4M), and FX reduced sales by CHF 9.4M, or 3.0%.

• EBITDA increased 39.8% to CHF 45.1M; reported EBIT reached CHF 23.4M, up 91.0%, from CHF 12.2M in 2022.

• Net profit rose to CHF 6.1M from CHF 3.8M; Core EBIT increased 52.9% to CHF 32.7M and Core net profit rose 35.8% to CHF 16.7M.

• Core EPS rose 14.0% to CHF 3.76 from CHF 3.30; reported EPS was CHF 1.37 versus CHF 1.03.

• Operating free cash flow before acquisition payments was CHF 26.3M versus negative CHF 21.6M; after acquisition payments it was CHF 4.3M versus negative CHF 41.1M.

Outlook and guidance

• FY 2024 guidance: sales of CHF 460–500M and EBITDA margin of 10–13%, conditional on no significant deterioration in geopolitical, economic or financial conditions.

• Almost one year of sales is covered by backlog; new projects entering series production and consolidation of 2024 acquisitions are expected to support growth.

• Mid-term targets over 3–4 years: organic growth of 7–10% annually, sales above CHF 600M, Core EBIT margin of 7–10%, EBITDA margin of 10–13%, and Core ROIC above 15%.

• Further targets include net debt/EBITDA below 2.75 and capex up to 3% of sales, excluding major footprint expansions; target revisions may follow higher inorganic growth.

• No dividend was proposed for 2023; distributions will be reconsidered after sustainable positive net cash flow for at least two consecutive years.