SES STERLING : revenue, balance sheet and financial ratios

In 2023, SES STERLING achieves revenue of 29.5 M€. Revenue is growing positively over 8 years (CAGR: +2.2%). Slight decline of -1% vs 2022. After deducting consumption (8.4 M€), gross margin stands at 21.0 M€, i.e. a rate of 71%. This ratio measures the ability to generate value from commercial activity. EBITDA (= Gross margin - Personnel expenses - Taxes) reaches 1.2 M€, representing 4.1% of revenue. The operating margin remains fragile, requiring cost vigilance. Ultimately, net income (= EBIT +/- financial result +/- exceptional - corporate tax) amounts to 37 k€, i.e. 0.1% of revenue. This profit can be retained or distributed to shareholders.

The debt ratio (= Financial debt / Equity x 100) stands at 71%. Debt level is high: negotiating margin with banks is reduced. Financial autonomy (= Equity / Total assets x 100) reaches 51%. 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 8.8 years of cash flow to repay all financial debt. Beyond 7 years, banks generally consider credit risk as high. Cash flow represents 7.4% 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 582.83. 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 43.8x. 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: 41 days (formula: Customer receivables / Revenue incl. VAT x 360). Supplier term: 32 days. The company must finance 9 days of gap between collections and payments. Inventory turnover is 113 days (= Average inventory / Cost of goods x 360). This high level ties up cash and potentially creates obsolescence risk. Overall, WCR represents 108 days of revenue, i.e. 8.8 M€ to permanently finance. Over 2015-2023, WCR increased by +24%, requiring additional financing.

Based on 76 transactions of similar company sales (all years), the value of SES STERLING is estimated at 2 572 161 € (range 1 167 206€ - 4 160 112€). With an EBITDA of 1 205 999€, the sector multiple of 1.3x is applied. The price/revenue ratio is 0.20x (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.
Medium reliability: estimate to be confirmed with in-depth analysis.