About the company:
About the company:
Updater Services Limited is a leading, focused, and integrated business services platform in India offering integrated facilities management (“IFM”) services and business support services (“BSS”) to its customers, with a pan-India presence. The fact that it is the second largest player in the IFM market in India and has the widest service offering in the industry makes it a unique and differentiated player in the market. The Company was founded by Raghunandana Tangirala who has over 30 years of experience in the integrated business services industry. It operates in the Business-to-Business (“B2B”) services space offering a spectrum of business services, which are broadly classified into IFM, other services, and business support services. These services are primarily in the nature of annuity-based services whereby the customer, once acquired, generates revenue over an extended period of time. The portfolio of services offered across these business segments includes soft services, production support services, engineering services, warehouse management, institutional catering, sales enablement services, employee background verification services, audit & assurance services, airport ground handling services, and others. As of March 31, 2023, the company catered to 3,096 customers out of which 1,427 customers were offered IFM services whereas 1,669 customers were offered business support services. It caters to the needs of diverse customer segments across a range of sectors including FMCG, manufacturing and engineering, BFSI, healthcare, IT/ITeS, and automobiles among others.
The objective of the fresh issue:
The company intends to utilize the net proceeds received from the fresh issue towards:
1. Repayment and /or prepayment of certain borrowings availed by our Company.
2. Funding working capital requirements.
3. Pursuing inorganic initiatives.
4. General corporate purposes.
Key Strengths and Opportunities:
1. Updater Services Ltd is the second largest player in the highly fragmented soft services segment market in India with a share of 4.1% in the Financial Year ended March 31, 2023, and is also one of the leading companies providing services to the healthcare segment.
2. It has established a track record of successful inorganic growth through strategic acquisitions to supplement the business segments, diversify the revenue streams, and integrate such acquired businesses to further strengthen its services portfolio. It has pursued selective strategic acquisitions as a means to expand its operations and capitalize on potential operational synergies. Updater Services Ltd acquires companies and businesses whose offerings are complementary and supplementary to its own business. The past acquisitions of the company have added either a new customer segment, a new service line, or a new geography.
3. Another key strength of the company is that it has been able to maintain longstanding relationships with customers across diverse sectors leading to recurring business. It provides its services to customers across a diverse range of industries and sectors.
4. It is considering filling in gaps within the existing portfolio of services by introducing new products & services that are potentially large and margin accretive.
Risks:
1. As the company provides services in different business environments, it is exposed to operational risks. Failure to manage these risks can have an adverse impact on the business operations of the company.
2. Updater Services Ltd proposes to utilize a portion of the net proceeds to undertake an acquisition for which the target companies have not been identified yet. The inability to complete such transactions may adversely affect the growth prospects of the company.
3. The industries in which the company operates are intensely competitive and have low barriers to entry in certain instances. The inability to compete effectively may adversely affect its business, cash flows, results of operations, and financial condition.
4. There has been a reduction in the net profit of the company in the financial year ended March 31, 2023, compared to the previous two financial years ending March 31, 2022 and March 31, 2021. Any further reduction or any losses incurred in future periods could adversely affect the company’s operations and financial conditions and the trading price of its equity shares.
Financial Snapshot:
Particulars (Rs. in millions) | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 |
Revenue from Operations | 12,100 | 14,836 | 20,989 |
Y on Y Growth (%) | | 23% | 41% |
EBITDA | 702 | 865 | 998 |
Y on Y Growth (%) | | 23% | 15% |
PAT | 476 | 574 | 346 |
Y on Y Growth (%) | | 21% | -40% |
EBITDA Margin | 6% | 6% | 5% |
PAT Margin | 4% | 4% | 2% |
ROCE | 23% | 20% | 14% |
ROE | 16% | 16% | 9% |
Debt-to-Equity | 0.04 | 0.17 | 0.46 |
Conclusion:
The company comes at an earnings valuation of 45x based on its EPS as of March 31, 2023 and the upper price band. In comparison, its listed peers, such as Quess Corp Limited, SIS Limited, and TeamLease Services Limited, exhibit PE ratios of 28x, 18x, and 39x respectively as of September 21, 2023. This implies that Updater Services Limited comes at a higher earnings valuation. The current market conditions appear to be unfavourable largely due to substantial selling pressure prevailing in the market. Given these factors, we recommend our investors AVOID subscribing to the Updater Services Limited IPO until both the overall market conditions and the company’s fundamentals demonstrate a more favorable outlook for investment.
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