ABO-Group Environment Annual Results 2023

Ghent, 28 March 2024 – 18.30 CET – Press release / regulated information

2023 highlights

• ABO-GROUP saw her revenue grow by 20%, to €85.2 million, thanks to 5 acquisitions and 10% organic growth
• The EBITDA margin increased by 13% on a year-to-year basis, thanks to the smooth integration of the acquisitions
• A solid balance sheet with a debt ratio of 1.5x EBITDA, and a solvency ratio of 30%

Outlook

• Strengthening of the existing areas of expertise, with a focus on the growth drivers ecology, PFAS and the mining industry
• Continued focus on M&A: Eau & Perspectives, ABO-GROUP’s first acquisition in 2024
• The "€100 million revenue" mark within reach, quicker than planned

Frank De Palmenaer, CEO ABO-GROUP Environment: “This year, ABO-GROUP succeeded in realising the strongest performance in recent years, growing by 20%. The accumulated experience relating to the quick integration of various acquisitions and the strategic, flexible vision of our employees in Belgium, the Netherlands and France contributed to this. Following a challenging start to 2023, we succeeded in also increasing the organic growth and boosting operational margins.

Moreover, the acquisitions of DynaOpt, MEET HET and SWBO added specific areas of expertise and capacities to the Group, enabling us to be of even better service to our customers as a one-stop-shop. This also lays the foundation for the coming year, in which we will continue along the familiar path – strong internal development and value creation, combined with specific acquisitions to further strengthen our knowledge and expertise. With the acquisition of Eau & Perspectives early this year, we have already added a hydrological leg to our environmental branch, which we will also further develop in the other countries. Through this internal cross-fertilisation, we continue to strengthen the Group, and to prepare ourselves for further growth.”

1 EBITDA defined as operating profit before depreciation, impairments and provisions

Strong 20% increase in turnover, evenly distributed between organic and external growth

The five acquired entities significantly contribute to the revenue of the Group. DynaOpt (12 months), SEGED (10.5 months), MEET HET and Rimeco (each 6 months) and SWBO (3 months) ensured €6.8 million revenue. Together with the remaining impact of the acquisition of Geo-Supporting and Colsen in 2022, the acquisitions ensure 10.1% growth compared to 2022. The existing entities of the Group match these results, however – thanks to the increase of 9.6% in their activities, ABO-GROUP is able to report a total revenue of €83.6 million, a growth of 19.7% compared to 2022. 

Featured projects

ABO Group constantly endeavours to take its role as a positive force in society to heart and uses its years of experience and expertise to best represent the interests of its customers, partners and society. Throughout the past year, the Group was committed to a variety of projects, which helped achieve these great results. For instance, the recently acquired French monitoring expert DynaOpt is collaborating on the restoration of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. In the Netherlands, our entities ABO-Geomet, Sialtech and Geosonda joined forces for a project concerning the construction of no less than 20,000 houses in Almere. In one of our R&D files, ABO in Belgium has the lead within the European subsidised LIFE CAPTURE project, where it is working with 7 European partners-specialists from academia and industry-to investigate, map PFAS contamination and develop innovative remediation techniques.

Recovery of the operational margins and net result

The recovery of the geotechnical market in France, the increased contribution of the new entities in the Group and the focus on efficient cost management resulted in an increase of the EBITDA margin from 11.4% in the first half of the year to 13.1% for the full year. The total EBITDA thereby increased from €9.9 million (13.9% margin) in 2022 to €11.2 million in 2023, an increase of 13.1%. Depreciations and provisions increase slightly from €6.4 million to €6. 5 million. Consequently, the EBIT (the operating result) increased by 33%, from €3.5 to €4.9 million.

Due to the significant increase in interest rates, the financial loss increased from €0.7 to €1.2 million. Moreover, the strong performances of the operational entities resulted in a higher expected tax burden amounting to €1.0 million, compared to €0.6 million the previous year. Net profit nevertheless increased from €2.2 million (€0.21 per share) in 2022 to €2.5 million (€0.24 per share) in 2023.

Cash-flow generation and debt position under control, despite margin pressure

The margin recovery and management of the operating capital were partially compensated by higher cash taxes, but, despite this fact, the operating cash-flow rose from €7.1 to €7.7 million, representing an increase of 9.1%. The completed acquisitions represent a net cash-outflow of €4.0 million, resulting in the investment cash-flow for 2023 amounting to €7.9 million, almost double compared to 2022, when the acquisitions of the trade funds of Colsen and Geo-Supporting only required a cash-outflow of €0.6 million.

As a result of the investments of ABO-GROUP in the French and Belgian acquisitions, the net financial debt increased from €10.6 million at the end of 2022 to €16.2 million at the end of 2023. The debt ratio increased to 1.5x compared to the EBITDA (1.1x at the end of 2022). The EBITDA thereby remains healthy and provides the Group with space to continue its investments in assets and/or acquisitions.

Due to the various acquisitions, the balance sheet total increased by €5.5 million to €86.3 million at the end of 2023, representing an increase of 21.9%. On the assets side, this is reflected in an increase of the tangible fixed assets and customer relationships, and, on the liabilities side, in the long-term debts, while the operating capital elements increased on both sides. Total equity amounted to €25.8 million at year-end, an increase by €4.1 million, compared to end 2022. The equity ratio is 29.9% (compared to 30.8% at the end of last year).

The full consolidated income statement and balance sheet, the statement of changes in equity, and the consolidated cash flow statement are included below.

Outlook

Strong focus on mining, ecology and PFAS in 2024, with an acceleration of the 2025 plan

For 2024, ABO-GROUP will continue to focus on the developments in the European mining sector, which are expected to further increase due to the various initiatives at the European level. In addition, the Group will also make efforts to make the PFAS issue visible in France, ensuring that the necessary awareness is created with regard to this crucial topic in the area of soil remediation. Finally, the Group is also expecting much from its ecological activities, which can count on increasing interest in the three countries. Together with the further recovery and growth of the geotechnical activities, this should constitute a good basis for a new year of sustainable growth.

Thanks to the strong results of 2023, the additional contribution of the newly-acquired entities and the outlook for 2024, the revenue mark of €100 million will be within reach faster than expected – the Group is expecting to achieve a turnover between €95 and €100 million during the upcoming financial year.

Financial calendar

25/04/2024: Publication of the 2023 annual report and convocation of the General Meeting

29/05/2024: General Meeting

19/09/2024: Publication of the Half Year Results 2024

Statement of the statutory auditor

The statutory auditor, EY Bedrijfsrevisoren BV, represented by Paul Eelen, has confirmed that its audit work, which has been completed in all its material aspects, has not revealed any significant correction with respect to the consolidated income statement, the consolidated total result, the consolidated balance sheet, the consolidated statement of changes in equity and the consolidated cash flow statement included in this press release.

About the ABO-GROUP

ABO-GROUP is a specialised, listed engineering office focussing on geotechnology, environment and soil remediation. Through its Consultancy and Testing & Monitoring departments, ABO-GROUP operates in Belgium, the Netherlands and France, as well as internationally. The ABO-GROUP offers and guarantees its clients a sustainable solution. For a more detailed description of the operations of the group, please consult the ABO-Group website ().

For more information:

Frank De Palmenaer

CEO ABO-GROUP Environment NV T 8

Attachment