(AOF) – The biggest increase in the SBF 120 index, Sopra Steria soared 10.02% to 232.80 euros after hitting a historic high of 233 euros in the first minutes of trading. The digital transformation specialist reported “excellent 2023 results”, says Invest Securities while revealing its intention to separate from its Sopra Banking Software activity. In 2023, the digital services company recorded organic growth of 6.6% in its activity, reaching 5.805 billion euros.
In July, the group had expected organic growth of “at least 6%”.
Its operating income from activity came to 548.2 million, up 21% over one year. The operating margin of activity stood at 9.4%, an improvement of 0.5 points.
Its free cash flow generation stands at 390.2 million euros, clearly exceeding the initial objective of “at least 300 million euros”, announced by the company.
Net income, group share, stands at 183.7 million euros compared to 247.8 million euros in 2022. It includes a non-recurring depreciation of 89 million euros relating to the Sopra Banking Software asset.
Sopra Steria specifies that this depreciation will have no impact on cash flow and the dividend proposed for the 2023 financial year.
The company will also propose a dividend of 4.65 euros, an increase of 8.1% compared to the 4.30 euros paid for 2022.
Sale of Sopra Steria Banking
Alongside the publication of its results, Sopra Steria announced the sale of Sopra Steria Banking to Axway Software for an enterprise value of 330 million euros.
This banking software activity is no longer at the heart of its strategic priorities.
The company says it wants to better focus on digital services and solutions in its core markets such as financial services, defense & security, aerospace, and the public sector.
In terms of prospects, the group anticipates organic growth in turnover of between 2 and 4% for 2024. The operating margin rate on activity is for its part expected between 9.5 and 10% and the free cash flow of at least 350 million euros.
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