HACHETTE LIVRE : revenue, balance sheet and financial ratios

In 2024, HACHETTE LIVRE achieves revenue of 1.4 Bn€. Revenue is growing positively over 9 years (CAGR: +2.9%). Slight decline of -1% vs 2023. After deducting consumption (845.7 M€), gross margin stands at 510.8 M€, i.e. a rate of 38%. This ratio measures the ability to generate value from commercial activity. EBITDA (= Gross margin - Personnel expenses - Taxes) reaches 54.7 M€, representing 4.0% of revenue. The operating margin remains fragile, requiring cost vigilance. Ultimately, net income (= EBIT +/- financial result +/- exceptional - corporate tax) amounts to 193.5 M€, i.e. 14.3% of revenue. This profit can be retained or distributed to shareholders.

The debt ratio (= Financial debt / Equity x 100) stands at 6%. 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 54%. 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 0.3 years of cash flow to repay all financial debt. This short period demonstrates excellent debt sustainability. Cash flow represents 15.7% 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 132.24. 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 68.9x. 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: 84 days (formula: Customer receivables / Revenue incl. VAT x 360). Supplier term: 108 days. Favorable situation: supplier credit is longer than customer credit by 24 days. Inventory turnover is 24 days (= Average inventory / Cost of goods x 360). Fast turnover, sign of good inventory management. Overall, WCR represents 141 days of revenue, i.e. 531.5 M€ to permanently finance. Over 2016-2024, WCR increased by +82%, requiring additional financing.

Based on 104 transactions of similar company sales (all years), the value of HACHETTE LIVRE is estimated at 301 795 117 € (range 106 558 613€ - 639 060 416€). With an EBITDA of 54 736 000€, the sector multiple of 1.1x is applied. The price/revenue ratio is 0.24x (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.