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Born in Florence in 1981 in the university fold, the group designs and markets laser devices used in medicine and industry. If you have any experience of industry dynamics, you probably think that the characteristics of these two markets are very different, and you are right. The medical branch is more profitable and less competitive than the industrial branch. However, the latter has benefited for several years from strong demand from the Chinese steel industry, which has boosted its growth. The industry generated 45.5% of the group’s turnover last year, against 35% five years earlier, mainly thanks to laser tools for cutting materials, but also in the marking of products or more confidential, such as the restoration of monuments.
The medical division is mainly exposed to the cosmetic surgery market, ranging from hair removal to acne treatment, including all kinds of cosmetic applications. El.En. also has a non-invasive surgical range and supplements the division’s revenues with a range of services dedicated to its products. It goes without saying that all this arsenal is perfectly in tune with the aesthetic aspirations of the time. This partly explains why the medical gross margin flirts with 45%, against 28% for the industry. It is therefore the nugget of the group, especially as the growth dynamic is accelerating after the air pocket linked to the coronavirus. In geographical terms, the Florentine is a very international player, which carries out approximately 80% of its activity outside the Italian borders. It also has production sites in Italy, Germany, China and Brazil, in addition to R
El.En. will roughly double its turnover between 2019 and 2024, to increase it from 401 to 796 million euros, according to the projections currently available. At the same time, its results should be multiplied by 2.5. This is a sign that profitability is on an upward slope, after an intense phase of R
The company also has the advantage of prudent management, which has allowed it to weather economic cycles without too much damage. Management did not interrupt the payment of the dividend during the health crisis, which offers a good illustration of its level of confidence. To top it off, El.En. has copious excess cash and managers who are also shareholders with almost half of the capital. In other words, the company has the resources necessary for its development and the experience required to use them wisely. The management also keeps a major card up its sleeve, the split followed by an IPO of its largest industrial segment, laser cutting. He very recently confirmed that this was a line of thought, in the event that a refocusing on more sophisticated activities appeared to him to be judicious. If the project were to materialize, the valuation that we mentioned earlier would have even more reasons to tend towards the medical sector than towards industry.