CREA-FROID CENTRE : revenue, balance sheet and financial ratios

In 2018, CREA-FROID CENTRE achieves revenue of 378 k€. Over the period 2015-2018, the company shows strong growth with a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of +33.1%. Significant drop of -41% vs 2017. After deducting consumption (142 k€), gross margin stands at 237 k€, i.e. a rate of 63%. This ratio measures the ability to generate value from commercial activity. EBITDA (= Gross margin - Personnel expenses - Taxes) reaches 73 k€, representing 19.4% of revenue. Warning negative scissor effect: despite revenue change (-41%), EBITDA varies by -60%, reducing margin by 9.4 pts. This reflects costs rising faster than revenue. This high EBITDA margin provides strong self-financing capacity and resilience to uncertainties. Ultimately, net income (= EBIT +/- financial result +/- exceptional - corporate tax) amounts to 45 k€, i.e. 12.0% of revenue. This profit can be retained or distributed to shareholders.

The debt ratio (= Financial debt / Equity x 100) stands at 29%. This very low level reflects a solid financial structure, offering significant room for future investments or acquisitions. Financial autonomy (= Equity / Total assets x 100) reaches 66%. This high autonomy means the company finances most of its assets through equity, a sign of strength. Debt repayment capacity (= Financial debt / Cash flow) indicates it would take 1.1 years of cash flow to repay all financial debt. This short period demonstrates excellent debt sustainability. Cash flow represents 16.1% of revenue. Cash flow measures resources generated by operations, available for investment and debt repayment. This high level provides strong self-financing capacity.

The liquidity ratio (= Current assets / Current liabilities) stands at 344.15. Concretely, the company has €2 of liquid assets for every €1 of short-term debt: no cash risk within 12 months. The interest coverage ratio (= EBIT / Interest expenses) is 3.0x. Financial charges are adequately covered by operations.

Working capital requirement (WCR) measures the cash timing gap between customer collections and supplier/inventory payments. Average customer payment term: 64 days (formula: Customer receivables / Revenue incl. VAT x 360). Supplier term: 18 days. The gap of 46 days means the company finances its customers for over a month before being paid relative to supplier payments. This weighs on cash flow. Inventory turnover is 6 days (= Average inventory / Cost of goods x 360). Fast turnover, sign of good inventory management. Overall, WCR represents 145 days of revenue, i.e. 152 k€ to permanently finance. Over 2015-2018, WCR increased by +455%, requiring additional financing.

Indicative estimate only : the number of comparable transactions in this sector is limited (46 transactions). This range of 39 285€ to 256 214€ is provided for information purposes only and requires in-depth analysis to be confirmed.