CL AUTOMOBILES : revenue, balance sheet and financial ratios

In 2024, CL AUTOMOBILES achieves revenue of 420 k€. Revenue is declining over the period 2022-2024 (CAGR: -9.3%). Significant drop of -20% vs 2023. After deducting consumption (165 k€), gross margin stands at 255 k€, i.e. a rate of 61%. This ratio measures the ability to generate value from commercial activity. EBITDA (= Gross margin - Personnel expenses - Taxes) reaches 28 k€, representing 6.6% of revenue. Positive scissor effect: EBITDA margin improves by +11.5 pts, sign of improved operational efficiency. The operating margin remains fragile, requiring cost vigilance. Ultimately, net income (= EBIT +/- financial result +/- exceptional - corporate tax) amounts to 32 k€, i.e. 7.6% of revenue. This profit can be retained or distributed to shareholders.

The debt ratio (= Financial debt / Equity x 100) stands at 124%. Debt level is high: negotiating margin with banks is reduced. Financial autonomy (= Equity / Total assets x 100) reaches 33%. The balance between equity and debt is satisfactory. Debt repayment capacity (= Financial debt / Cash flow) indicates it would take 5.2 years of cash flow to repay all financial debt. This ratio remains within usual banking standards. Cash flow represents 5.5% of revenue. Cash flow measures resources generated by operations, available for investment and debt repayment. Satisfactory level allowing partial financing of growth.

The liquidity ratio (= Current assets / Current liabilities) stands at 203.01. 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 13.0x. Operating income very largely covers interest expenses: high safety margin.

Working capital requirement (WCR) measures the cash timing gap between customer collections and supplier/inventory payments. Average customer payment term: 20 days (formula: Customer receivables / Revenue incl. VAT x 360). Supplier term: 45 days. Favorable situation: supplier credit is longer than customer credit by 25 days. Inventory turnover is 2 days (= Average inventory / Cost of goods x 360). Fast turnover, sign of good inventory management. WCR is negative (-3 days): operations structurally generate cash. Notable WCR improvement over the period (-109%), freeing up cash.

Based on 147 transactions of similar company sales in 2024, the value of CL AUTOMOBILES is estimated at 149 595 € (range 68 494€ - 272 885€). With an EBITDA of 27 893€, the sector multiple of 5.5x is applied. The price/revenue ratio is 0.35x (conservative valuation). This multiples method compares the actual sale price of similar companies to their financial indicators (Revenue, EBITDA, Net Income). It provides a market-based indicative estimate.