STAR7 – Board of Directors approves Consolidated Half-yearly Report as at 30 June 2025
STAR7:
BOARD OF DIRECTORS APPROVES CONSOLIDATED HALF-YEARLY REPORT AS AT 30 JUNE 2025
Significant increase in margins against largely steady revenues
Double-digit growth in net profit (+11.7%)
Continued reduction in net financial debt due to strong cash generation
Revenues: €59.0 million (-2.3% compared to €60.4 million in the first half of 2024). Up on like-for-like basis and at constant exchange rates
Adjusted EBITDA*: €9.6 million (+4.8% compared to €9.2 million in the first half of 2024)
Adjusted EBITDA Margin*: 16.3% (+110 basis points compared to 15.2% in the first half of 2024)
EBITDA: €9.0 million (+4.9% compared to €8.6 million in the first half of 2024)
EBITDA Margin: 15.3% (+110 basis points compared to 14.2% in the first half of 2024)
Profit for the period: €1.7 million (+11.7% compared to €1.5 million in the first half of 2024)
Adjusted profit for the period: €4.5 million (+14.9% compared to €3.9 million in the first half of 2024)
NET FINANCIAL POSITION: debt of €29.5 million (-€3.2 million compared to debt of €32.7 million as at 31 December 2024)
* For details on the nature of the adjustments, please refer to the table attached to this press release with adjusted income statement figures
** Includes cash outflow related to the acquisition of the CAAR Group business division, completed on 13 January 2025
Valle San Bartolomeo (Alessandria, Italy), 24 September 2025 – The Board of Directors of STAR7 (EGM ticker: STAR7) met today under the chairmanship of Lorenzo Mondo to examine and approve the Consolidated Half-yearly Report as at 30 June 2025. STAR7 is a company that provides an integrated range of product-information services, from product and process engineering support to the creation and management of technical and marketing content, translation, printing and virtual experience. The financial statements were prepared in accordance with the Euronext Growth Milan Issuers Regulation and in compliance with Italian accounting standards.
Lorenzo Mondo, Chairman and CEO of STAR7, commented: “Results in the first half 2025 confirm the robustness of our integrated business model, capable of generating value even in a complex macroeconomic environment and without any non-strategic project contributions. After 19% growth in H1 2024, maintaining stable revenues in 2025 – on a like-for like basis and constant exchange rates – is an important signal of the resilience and maturity of our business approach.
The strategy of streamlining costs and optimising the project portfolio is continuing to produce tangible results in terms of improved margins, thanks to greater operational efficiency and targeted choices to focus on high value-added initiatives. This is reflected in an increase in EBITDA, which highlights the Group’s growing ability to generate operating value, and an improvement in net profit, confirming the economic sustainability of our strategic choices.
The net financial position also showed a positive trend, thanks to careful cash management and financial discipline, allowing us to further reinforce our capital strength.
Our strong skills in product knowledge management, shown by the growth of the Experience and Product Knowledge service lines and the positive contribution of the Engineering service line, positions STAR7 as a service integrator capable of intercepting and satisfying growing demand for increasingly specialised, high-tech and integrated solutions.
We look forward to the second half of the year with confidence, bolstered by an increasingly focused organisation, a distinctive offering, and a strategy consistent with our goals of sustainable growth and profitability.”
* * *
PERFORMANCE AND FINANCIAL POSITION
Revenues
In the first half of 2025, STAR7 reported revenues of approximately €59 million at current exchange rates (€60 million at constant exchange rates).
On a like-for-like basis and at constant exchange rates, revenues would have shown growth compared to the figure for the first half of 2024. It should be noted that some negative-margin projects in the Engineering service line have been discontinued in 2025. These projects, inherited from the acquisition of CAAR-STI, had generated about €0.5 million in revenues in the first half of 2024. As part of the ongoing rationalisation strategy aimed at improving profitability, STAR7 opted to discontinue them.
In the first half of 2024, the Group recorded growth of approximately 19% compared to the same period of the previous year. Maintaining stable revenues in the first half of 2025, despite the discontinuation of non-strategic contracts and against a complex macroeconomic context, is therefore a positive result, which confirms the soundness of the business model and the Group’s ability to generate sustainable value in the long term.
As regards the breakdown of revenues by service line, the Experience and Product Knowledge line held its ground, accounting for about 33.4% of the total, up from 31.7% for the whole of 2024 and 33.3% in the first half of the same year. This result reflects the strengthening of the high value-added offering and the growing demand for specialised services in the technical and training field.
The Global Content line stood at 32.6% of total revenues, reflecting a rebalancing of the offer mix, consistent with the strategy of focusing on projects with more strategic clients.
The Engineering line accounted for 21%, up from the previous year’s figures (20.4% in 1H24 and FY24). The figure reflects the discontinuation of some projects with negative margins (as mentioned above). On a like-for-like basis and at constant exchange rates, this service line would have shown even more significant growth, driven in particular by the positive performance recorded in Brazil thanks to the contribution of a leading operator in the automotive sector. This confirms the solidity of demand and the Group’s ability to intercept highly technical opportunities in international markets.
The Printing line remained stable at 13.0%, in line with the full year 2024.
|
Service Lines as a % of Group Revenues |
1H24 |
FY24 |
1H25 |
|
Global Content |
33.2% |
34.9% |
32.6% |
|
Experience and Product Knowledge |
33.3% |
31.7% |
33.4% |
|
opens its doors |
20.4% |
20.4% |
21.0% |
|
Printing |
13.1% |
13.0% |
13.0% |
The geographical breakdown of revenues for the first half of 2025 confirms STAR7’s progressive internationalisation. The Italian market, which accounted for more than half of Group revenues in the first half of 2024, now stands at approximately 47.8%. This trend reflects the growing penetration of Revenues realised in foreign markets, with a particularly strong performance in Brazil, which rose to 20.5% (compared to 18.1% in H1 2024) despite the depreciation of the Real.
|
Geographical breakdown of Group revenues |
1H24 |
FY24 |
1H25 |
|
ITALY |
51.2% |
48.3% |
47.8% |
|
USA |
24.5% |
26.1% |
24.7% |
|
BRAZIL |
18.1% |
19.3% |
20.5% |
|
OTHER |
6.2% |
6.3% |
7.0% |
EBITDA
During the period, the Group recorded an increase in margins compared to the same period of the previous year. This performance is the combined result of greater operational efficiency, which has enabled significant cost containment, and the strategic decision to concentrate resources on initiatives with higher technological content and, therefore, greater added value.
In the first half of 2025, the STAR7 Group’s EBITDA amounted to €9.0 million, up 4.9% from €8.6 million in the first half of 2024. Adjusted EBITDA (excluding integration and restructuring costs mainly related to the CAAR Group business division) reached €9.6 million, up 4.8% from €9.2 million in the first half of 2024).
The EBITDA Margin, at 15.3%, showed an improvement of 110 basis points compared to 14.2% in H1 2024. The Adjusted EBITDA Margin was 16.3%, up 110 basis points from 15.2% in H1 2024.
EBIT
STAR7 Group EBIT amounted to €4.6 million, an increase of 2.6% compared to €4.5 million in the first half of 2024 (the adjusted figure improved by 7.5%).
Profit for the period
The STAR7 Group reported a Net Profit of €1.7 million in the first half of 2025, an increase of approximately 12% compared to €1.5 million in the first half of 2024.
The M&A transactions carried out to date have generated net goodwill of €30.9 million as at 30 June 2025, resulting in €2.4 million in amortisation of goodwill. In line with the main international accounting standards (IFRS), which do not provide for systematic amortisation of goodwill but require it to be tested annually for impairment, the adjusted Net Profit is provided excluding such amortisation. After goodwill amortisation, the adjusted Net Profit for the first half of 2025 would amount to €4.5 million.
Net financial position
The net financial position as at 30 June 2025 was a debt of €29.5 million (adjusted net debt of €32.7 million at 31 December 2024). Gross debt stood at €45.5 million (€53.3 million at 31/12/2024). The Net Debt/EBITDA ratio of 1.6 as at 30 June 2025 compares to a value of 1.8 as at 31 December 2024 (adjusted figure).
STAR7 also continues to comply with the covenants of its outstanding bonds and loans.
***
SIGNIFICANT EVENTS IN THE FIRST HALF OF 2025
January saw the completion of the acquisition of the business divisions of C.A.A.R. S.p.A. (registered office in Turin, Via Treviso 36) and S.T.I. s.r.l. (registered office in Bolzano, Via Buozzi 14/16), including the investee companies C.A.A.R. do Brasil Consultoria Tecnica LTDA (now renamed STAR7 Engenharia e Consultoria Tecnica LTDA, 76% owned) and Abacaar Doo Kraguievac (now renamed STAR7 Doo Kraguievac, 100% owned). It should be noted that the aforementioned business divisions and investee companies were operated under a lease agreement from 1 January 2023 until the final acquisition.
The acquisition of a further 10% stake in CAAR do Brasil Consultoria Técnica LTDA, in which STAR7 already held a 66% stake, was also finalised in the first half of the year. The transaction was finalised for R$ 3.2 million (approximately €510,000 at current exchange rates), further strengthening the Group’s presence in the strategic market of Brazil.
* * *
OUTLOOK
The operating and financial results achieved in the first half of 2025, combined with the solid trend in sales activity, allow us to take a positive view of the second half of the year. The Group will also continue to increase its focus on cash generation and consequent debt reduction.
On 22 July 2025, the share buyback programme authorised by the Shareholders’ Meeting of 6 May 2025 was started under the terms already disclosed to the market on the same date.
* * *
FILING OF DOCUMENTATION
A copy of the Consolidated Half-yearly Financial Report as at 30 June 2025, including the Independent Auditors’ Report, will be made available to the public within the terms set out by law at the company’s registered office in Valle San Bartolomeo (Alessandria, Italy), on the company’s website www.star-7.com in the section “Investor Relations/Reports and financial statements”, and on the authorised storage mechanism www.1info.it.
* * *
CONFERENCE CALL TO PRESENT H1 2025 RESULTS
The results for the first half of 2025 will be presented by STAR7’s management today, Wednesday 24 September 2025, at 3 p.m. CEST, during a conference call.
The conference call can be joined by registering at the following URL: https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/3ff0f047-2cbb-4560-8220-3c59469f1924@1d88a220-5f5c-42a8-8081-4a67baa01fc4
The presentation will be available on the company website from the start of the conference call, at https://www.star-7.com/en/investor-relations/presentations.
This press release is available on the STAR7 website www.star-7.com (in the “Investor Relations/Press releases” section) and on the storage system for regulated information www.1info.it.
STAR7
For more than 20 years, STAR7 has served its customers as a leader in the product information sector. Support for product and process engineering, creating and managing technical content, as well as marketing, translation, printing and virtual experience: STAR7’s range of services means it can assist its customers throughout the product life-cycle – from design to aftersales. STAR7’s hallmark has always been an approach combining specific know-how, technology and vision to offer the best possible solutions to the needs of customers and the global market. This approach has seen STAR7 strike major partnerships with leading international companies, establishing it as a reliable and credible global partner. STAR7 is part of the STAR Group network.
www.star-7.com.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
INVESTOR RELATIONS
investorrelations@star-7.com
STAR7 - CFO, M&A and Investor Relations Manager
Pierluigi Valletta
Tel: +39 0131 19788
Email: pierluigi.valletta@star-7.com
Blue Arrow - IR Advisor
Maria Grazia Mantini
Mob: +41 78 723 6840
Email: mariagrazia.mantini@bluearrow.ch
MEDIA RELATIONS
EURONEXT GROWTH ADVISOR
ALANTRA Capital Markets
Mob: +39 334 6267243
Email: ega@alantra.com