Q2 sales increased by 1.8% yoy to € 47.3m (eNuW: € 47.4m; eCons: € 47.3m), which was again driven by the Managed Services segment, where revenues grew by 6.1% yoy to € 33.7m (eNuW: € 33.2m). On the other hand, the ongoing economic weakness continued to negatively impact on the Consulting segment, as the business is usually characterized by shorter-term contracts compared to the Managed Services segment. Segment revenues hence decreased by 7.6% yoy to € 13.5m (eNuW: € 14.1m), which was also driven by the optimization of the consulting portfolio (i.e. reduction in low-margin projects) in accordance with the company’s mid-term strategy. Yet, the segment’s gross margin came in 0.9pp weaker yoy with 6.7%. The Managed Services margin also came in weaker at 20.7% following increased license costs, especially VMware. Overall gross profit came in at € 7.9m (-4.7% yoy), implying a 15.7% margin.

A clear highlight of the release in our view was the strong order intake of € 54.2m (+36% yoy, 1.15x b-t-b), providing sound visibility on future growth momentum. A recurring revenue share of 75% (Q1: 74%) should provide investors with additional confidence.

Despite the weaker gross margin, Q2 EBITDA strongly improved by 113% yoy to € 2.2m (eNuW: € 2.1m; eCons: € 2.2m), implying a 4.7% margin. The drivers behind the improvement were significant reductions in sales & marketing (-23% yoy) as well as G&A expenses (-22% yoy) following the successful implementation of the One q.beyond strategy.

Against this backdrop, management confirmed the FY guidance of € 192-198m sales, € 8-10m EBTIDA and positive FCF. As the sales (eNuW: € 194m; eCons: € 195m) and FCF (eNuW: € 6m; eCons: € 4.4m) should be clearly in reach, we even expect the company to achieve the upper end of the EBITDA guidance (eNuW: € 9.7m; eCons: € 9.3m). While this might look ambitious given H1 EBITDA of € 4.2m, we expect ongoing efficiency gains (i.e. higher near-shoring ratio: FY target of 17% vs 12% at H1) as well as scale effects in the Managed Services segment.

The  stock remains a BUY with an unchanged PT of € 1.10 based on DCF.

+++ For further information on the company’s “Strategy 2025”, there will be a roundtable discussion with CEO Rixen and CFO Wolters today at 3:00 p.m. (

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