At the center of business and stock market interest recently is the IT and more broadly technology sector, against the background of the mega projects of the Recovery Fund and the NSRF, amounting to more than 3.5 billion euros.
The deadline until 2027 for the completion of large digital projects and the “national” effort to ensure that community funds are not lost bring important developments, with new “players” being integrated into companies in the sector and with rumors of alliances-mergers it is intense.
More broadly, the technology sector is of particular investment interest, attracting all kinds of stakeholders, mainly with its enviable financial performance. As digitization progresses more and more in the everyday life of households and businesses, the investment interest will also increase. As of 2021, more than 42 acquisitions have been completed.
Revenue 1 billion euros
The revenues, which cumulatively exceed 1 billion euros annually for the IT industry, the strong liquidity, the series of acquisitions and investments in new technologies, the international collaborations and also the “marathon” for finding, training and integrating the appropriate personnel, in order to implement the backlogs, make up the big picture of the industry.
Over 10 tech companies have shown average annual growth in revenue, EBITDA and net profits by 22%, 33% and 60% respectively during the period 2019-22. These are Epsilon Net, Entersoft, Profile, Performance Technologies, Real Consulting, Space, Quality & Reliability, Ilyda, CPI and Ideal Holdings. In particular, Epsilon Net has more than tripled its 2019 figures, while Q&R turned positive in 2022.
As Optima Bank points out in its recent analysis, double-digit growth in revenue, operating profitability and net profit is expected not only to be sustained, but also to accelerate in the coming years driven by IT. Tourism, catering and health are lures for the “bosses” of the sector in business software, with the market showing increasingly strong concentration tendencies (the big ones absorb the small ones).
Growth conditions
This mobility is due to a number of factors, such as the lack of executives, the digital projects of the Recovery Fund, the cyber security that has become essential for every business, but also artificial intelligence, which is now the big bet for businesses and the public sector.
As Optima Bank points out, “the digital projects of the public and private sector, fintech, cyber security and the growing needs for the use of business software – and even from companies that until now had not integrated technology solutions in their activity – create conditions for development for technology companies”. A driving force is also the value of software, which is expected to triple in Greece within the next five years, reaching 1.2 billion euros, from 400 million euros today!
The acquisitions of 2024
SoftOne started the dance of acquisitions for 2024, acquiring a majority stake in Twinsoft, one of the largest catering software companies in Greece. The new investment of the SoftOne group creates a common customer base that numbers over 9,000 catering businesses, thus consolidating the group’s leadership position in one of the most critical sectors of the Greek economy. In fact, with the ongoing interconnection of cash registers – POS, the group expects “golden jobs”. At the same time, with a high track record of acquisitions such as IMPACT, cosmoONE, Regate, AppSoft and QBS, SoftOne is exploring the market for new acquisitions.
It was followed by the Epsilon Net group that got its hands on the Lavinet pharmacy management software from Lavisoft AE. The group, with 11 agreements during the period 2022-2023, further strengthens its market share and leadership position in the provision of integrated software solutions in the field of pharmacies, at the time when the digital transformation in health also begins.
the big bang
Anyway, the big one “bang” happened with the acquisition of 53.73% of Entersoft by Olympia Group of Panos Germanos, a move that brings restructuring to the business software market. Previously, Entersoft in 2022-2023 had completed seven deals with smaller IT companies. The deal with Olympia Group was made at 8 euros per share. Given that the main shareholders of Entersoft held 16,119,831 common nominal shares, the price for 53.73% reached the level of 129 million euros. Quest Group’s Unisystems, Ideal Holdings, Profile, Real Consulting and Performance Technologies also appear ready for acquisitions.
the “little ones”
The developments in the field of information technology were recently triggered by the stock changes in Quality & Reliability. A significant stake in Q&R (regarding 5.01% of the listed company) changed hands, passing to the control of Marbella Investments INC, the shipowner’s interests Elias Gotsi.
Other titles of the so-called “small” IT companies, such as Ilyda, Logismos and Intertech, also won. However, the one that stood out – beyond Q&R – was CPI, which was rumored to be planning a merger with Real Consulting, with both companies denying the information. However, despite the denials, CPI’s main shareholder Anastasios Pikounis recently proceeded to sell 233 thousand shares for a price of 0.7657 euros per share.
#Battle #billion #euro #mega #projects
