EQS is a leading international provider of regulatory technology in the fields of corporate compliance and investor relations. Its products enable corporate clients to fulfil complex national and international disclosure obligations, minimise risks and communicate transparently with stakeholders.
While EU whistleblowing regulation is now active, the December 2021 deadline for implementation in national laws was not met by most member states. 14 out of the 27 member states have now implemented, with Belgium and Italy also implementing the legislation in Q422. The experience in Denmark, the first country to implement the law, was of a last-minute surge of interest. Further down the line, the German law will be extended to companies and organisations with fewer employees.
Achim Weick
CEO
André Marques
CFO
Forecast net debt (€m)
37.2
Forecast gearing ratio (%)
35
% | 1M | 3M | 12M |
---|---|---|---|
Actual | 9.3 | 8.8 | (30.4) |
Relative | 4.2 | (3.9) | (30.9) |
52 week high/low | €37.4/€22.0 |
Progress of whistleblowing legislation through the German Bundestag was slower than hoped, with transposition finally achieved in mid-December, with a three-month implementation period. This delay led to management guiding to FY22e revenue growth of 25%, with EBITDA of €6.0m (was €6–10m). The EBITDA figure was in line with our earlier forecast, despite the lower revenue (€3.2m below) reflecting a degree of flexibility on costs. The underlying boost from legislation coming into force across Europe remains a strong positive from FY23. EQS reported 9M22 revenue growth of 27% (10% organic), with 702 new SaaS customers signed up, including 555 for whistleblowing.
Y/E Dec | Revenue (€m) | EBITDA (€m) | PBT (€m) | EPS (fd) (c) | P/E (x) | P/CF (x) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2020A | 37.6 | 4.8 | 0.4 | 4.12 | 628.6 | 49.5 |
2021A | 50.2 | 1.7 | (5.9) | (69.77) | N/A | N/A |
2022E | 62.8 | 6.0 | (4.3) | (29.68) | N/A | 84.3 |
2023E | 86.5 | 17.5 | 7.6 | 51.08 | 50.7 | 23.3 |
Get access to the very latest content matched to your personal investment style.