FINANCIAL DEVELOPMENTS
Turnover and gross margin
Ctac booked net turnover of EUR 86.1 million in 2015, an increase of 3.2% from the EUR 83.4 million recorded in 2014. The increase was entirely organic.
Turnover in consultancy, hosting and management rose by 3.5% to EUR 72.2 million in 2015, from EUR 69.8 million in 2014. Due to the fact that the cost of external hiring declined by
4.3% to EUR 16.7 million in 2015, from EUR 17.5 million in 2014, the gross margin on this activity increased to EUR 54.2 million in 2015, from EUR 51.7 million in 2014.
Turnover from software declined by 6.0% to EUR 5.7 million in 2015, from EUR 6.0 million in 2014. The gross margin on this turnover came in at EUR 2.2 million in 2015, compared with EUR 2.4 million in 2014.
Turnover from maintenance contracts came in 9.9% higher at EUR 8.2 million in 2015, from EUR 7.5 million in 2014. The gross margin on these activities increased by EUR 0.2 million to EUR 2.9 million.
Turnover per employee (based on the average number of FTEs on an annual basis) came in
1.6% higher at EUR 192,000 in 2015, from EUR 188,900 in 2014.
Operating costs
In 2015, staff costs increased on balance by EUR 0.7 million, or 1.7%, compared with the previous year. The average number of FTEs increased slightly to 449 in 2015, from 441 in
2014.
Other operating costs increased by EUR 0.9 million, or 6.8%, to EUR 14.3 million, from EUR 13.4 million in 2014.
Depreciations were up EUR 0.1 million at EUR 1.4 million.
Operating result
The operating result for the full year 2015 came in at EUR 3.4 million, up from EUR 2.6 million in 2014. This 26.7% increase on the previous year was almost entirely due to the gross margin, which saw a relatively greater increase than the operating costs due to more profitable turnover.
The operating result in the fourth quarter of 2015 was EUR 1.4 million, compared to EUR 1.0 million in the same period of 2014.
Financial income and expenses
At year-end 2015, Ctac’s net bank debt stood at EUR 2.7 million, compared with EUR 3.2 million at year-end 2014. The related interest costs remained unchanged at around EUR 0.1 million. Other financial expenses (including the interest on earn-out obligations) came in also at around the same level as in 2014. This resulted in an unchanged charge of EUR 0.2 million in 2015 (2014: EUR 0.2 million).
Taxes
In 2015, the tax rate was 23.8%, down from 27.3% in 2014.
Net result and earnings per share
Ctac booked a net result of EUR 2.4 million in 2015, compared with EUR 1.7 million in the previous year. This translated into earnings per share of EUR 0.19 based on the weighted average number of 12,515,497 outstanding ordinary shares. The total number of outstanding ordinary shares was unchanged at 12,515,497 at 31 December 2015.
Balance sheet
The shareholders’ equity had increased by EUR 2.4 million to EUR 13.6 million at year-end
2015, as a result of the addition of net result of EUR 2.4 million for 2015. In line with reporting standards, the shareholders’ equity was calculated without taking into account the proposal for profit appropriation.
Trade receivables and other receivables increased by around EUR 3.1 million to EUR 20.6 million at year-end 2015. The balance sheet total had increased by EUR 4.3 million to EUR 40.4 million at year-end 2015, from EUR 36.1 million at year-end 2014.
The solvency ratio (shareholders’ equity / total assets) improved to 33.7% at year-end 2015, from 31.1% at year-end 2014.
Ctac’s net bank debt dropped to EUR 2.7 million by the end of 2015, from EUR 3.2 million at year-end 2014. The facility agreed with ABN AMRO stood at EUR 7.3 million at the end of 2015. Ctac issued a right of lien on receivables, operating equipment and IP rights as surety.
Cash flow and investments
The cash flow from operations came in at EUR 2.9 million positive in 2015 (2014: EUR 4.4 million positive). The cash flow from operating activities amounted to EUR 2.2 million positive in 2015 (2014: EUR 3.8 million positive).
In 2015, Ctac invested EUR 1.2 million in (in)tangible fixed assets (2014: EUR 1.7 million). The investments were largely spent on the replacement of the IT infrastructure and new computers.
The cash flow from financing activities pertained largely to the payment of EUR 0.5 million in earn out obligations (2014: EUR 1.4 million); unlike in 2014 (EUR 0.4 million) the payments related to the share of third parties were negligible in 2015. In 2014, Ctac also paid off EUR 0.2 million of the long-term borrowings.
The net cash flow came in at EUR 0.5 million positive in 2015 (2014: EUR 0.1 million).
Proposal appropriation of results
After careful consideration of the impact of a dividend payment on the net cash flow in 2016, the shareholders’ equity, the composition of same and the other balance sheet components, Ctac will ask to the General Meeting of Shareholders to approve the payment of a dividend of EUR 0.06 per ordinary share from the net profit. The aforesaid proposal is in line with the previously formulated dividend policy. The remaining part of the net profit will be added in its entirety to the (still negative) other reserves, which are recognised under shareholders’ equity.
Events after the balance sheet date
In the context of the further tightening of its strategy, Ctac reported on 5 January 2016 that it had sold its entire stake in IFS Probity (59.8%) to the minority shareholders at the intrinsic value.
In accordance with reporting standards (International Financial Reporting Standards), the sale of the IFS stake has already been accounted for in the balance sheet as at 31 December 2015 in the separate lines Assets ‘Held for Sale’ and Liabilities ‘Held For Sale’.
STRATEGY AND MANAGEMENT ORGANISATION
Ctac sees it as its mission to enable its clients to realise their ambitions by converting the advantages of information technology into actual business value. This also challenges our employees to be ambitious.
Ctac has divided this mission into the following goals:
unburdening (international) clients in the medium-sized and larger business segment by providing suitable and reliable ICT solutions at acceptable costs. These solutions should make a contribution to the sustainable profitability and the competitive strength of these clients to safeguard the continuity of their businesses;
the continued transition from ERP services provider into a distinctive provider of combined ICT solutions as a Total Solution Provider;
continued development of the Ctac organisation in line with the market potential and providing continuity for all stakeholders.
In recent years, Ctac has adapted its organisation and tightened its strategy in such a way that it has transformed the company into a prominent Total Solution Provider. In 2016 and the years ahead, Ctac will focus on the formation of integrated – in terms of market and/or expertise – business units that are optimally equipped to provide clients with high-grade specialist solutions.
The current organisational structure is such that the management team is responsible for the centralised and integrated management of all sales and delivery activities in all countries. In the Netherlands, our services are divided into three sectors: Consulting (including SAP and Microsoft), Cloud Services and Ctac Resourcing. The company’s sales activities are managed centrally.