CREACARD : revenue, balance sheet and financial ratios

In 2024, CREACARD achieves revenue of 43.7 M€. Over the period 2015-2024, the company shows strong growth with a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of +10.1%. Significant drop of -32% vs 2023. After deducting consumption (1.2 M€), gross margin stands at 42.5 M€, i.e. a rate of 97%. This ratio measures the ability to generate value from commercial activity. EBITDA (= Gross margin - Personnel expenses - Taxes) reaches 3.5 M€, representing 8.1% of revenue. Warning negative scissor effect: despite revenue change (-32%), EBITDA varies by -72%, reducing margin by 11.3 pts. This reflects costs rising faster than revenue. This level of operating margin is satisfactory for the sector. Ultimately, net income (= EBIT +/- financial result +/- exceptional - corporate tax) amounts to 761 k€, i.e. 1.7% of revenue. This profit can be retained or distributed to shareholders.

The debt ratio (= Financial debt / Equity x 100) stands at 0%. 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 49%. 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 0.0 years of cash flow to repay all financial debt. This short period demonstrates excellent debt sustainability. Cash flow represents 3.7% of revenue. Cash flow measures resources generated by operations, available for investment and debt repayment.

The liquidity ratio (= Current assets / Current liabilities) stands at 242.65. 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 0.0x. Danger: operating income does not cover interest charges, unsustainable situation.

Working capital requirement (WCR) measures the cash timing gap between customer collections and supplier/inventory payments. Average customer payment term: 179 days (formula: Customer receivables / Revenue incl. VAT x 360). Supplier term: 56 days. The gap of 123 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 18 days (= Average inventory / Cost of goods x 360). Fast turnover, sign of good inventory management. Overall, WCR represents 308 days of revenue, i.e. 37.4 M€ to permanently finance. Over 2015-2024, WCR increased by +681%, requiring additional financing.

Based on 103 transactions of similar company sales (all years), the value of CREACARD is estimated at 9 011 557 € (range 4 319 275€ - 21 229 216€). With an EBITDA of 3 534 171€, the sector multiple of 2.5x is applied. The price/revenue ratio is 0.30x (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.