Why this under-the-radar tech stock could light up in the market in FY19 

The share price of Citadel Group Ltd (ASX:CGL) has surged 12% higher since the company released its impressive FY18 financial results two weeks ago. Could Citadel be the next tech stock to light up the ASX?  

| More on:
a woman

You’re reading a free article with opinions that may differ from The Motley Fool’s Premium Investing Services. Become a Motley Fool member today to get instant access to our top analyst recommendations, in-depth research, investing resources, and more. Learn More

Tech and software solutions provider Citadel Group Ltd (ASX: CGL) has had a fantastic year. The company, which specialises in IT security and data management, generated record revenues for FY18 of $108.5 million. And net profit for the year was up 26% versus FY17 to $19.4 million. 

The growth was driven by a record number of new and extended contracts in FY18 that together brought in $74 million.

Most contract wins were for its flagship Citadel-IX cloud-based enterprise information management platform. The platform allows clients to securely access or transfer proprietary and sensitive information remotely.  

Citadel has over 24,000 clients for its Citadel-IX software, and key amongst them are several branches of Australian local, state and federal government, including the Department of Treasury and Finance, Department of Premier and Cabinet, and the Victorian Public Sector Commission.

It also services private sector companies in highly regulated industries where data security is of primary concern, such as health, transport, and finance.  

The strong results surprised the market. In the two weeks since releasing its results, Citadel's shares have surged over 12% higher to $7.65.  

Citadel currently trades at a multiple of a little under 24x earnings. This makes it quite cheap relative to other high performing tech stocks on the ASX. Current darling of the IT sector Altium Limited (ASX: ALU), which develops software used in the design and production of printed circuit boards, trades at about 98x earnings.

Logistics software company WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC), which has seen its share price jump 40% in the last two weeks, trades a multiple of a little under 160x earnings. And based on its first half FY18 results, data warehouse provider Nextdc Ltd (ASX: NXT) trades at a multiple of close to 200x earnings – though this could change significantly once its full year FY18 results are released to the market on Friday.  

So far, Citadel hasn't caught the attention of the market in the same way these other tech stocks have. However, the company is confident it can build on its success to deliver even more growth to shareholders in FY19.

It has a strong pipeline of opportunities, including collaborative projects with RAAF in New South Wales as well as several major universities, hospitals and healthcare centres. 

Citadel is also pursuing strategic acquisitions as a way to augment its organic growth. In 2016 it acquired Kapish, a developer of record-keeping software, and late last year it snapped up Charm Health, which specialises in oncology information management.

Then in April of this year Citadel announced another e-health acquisition, purchasing Queensland-based billing and practice management software developer Anaesthetic Private Practice.   

Foolish takeaway

Citadel isn't quite as developed as some of the other tech companies mentioned – Altium's net profit was almost double Citadel's for FY18. So that added financial uncertainty carries some extra risk, and makes it a slightly more speculative bet than some of its more established IT sector peers. 

But that being said, Citadel has proven itself to be a profitable company and it has grown its revenues and net profit consistently over the last two years. It has also managed to fly under the radar and could offer good value for long term growth investors who aren't afraid to take on a little extra risk.  

Motley Fool contributor Rhys Brock owns shares of WiseTech Global & Altium Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of Altium, Citadel Group Ltd, and WiseTech Global. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

More on Share Market News

A man looking at his laptop and thinking.
Share Gainers

Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today

It was a disappointing hump day session for the ASX today.

Read more »

Young man with a laptop in hand watching stocks and trends on a digital chart.
Broker Notes

Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today

Here's what brokers are recommending as buys this week.

Read more »

Man with a hand on his head looks at a red stock market chart showing a falling share price.
Share Market News

Why A2 Milk, Boss Energy, Evolution Mining, and Lifestyle Communities shares are sinking

These shares are under pressure on hump day. But why?

Read more »

A young man talks tech on his phone while looking at a laptop. A financial graph is superimposed across the image.
Share Market News

Why Botanix, Dexus, Strickland, and Telix shares are charging higher today

Let's see why these shares are having a good session on hump day.

Read more »

A man sits in deep thought with a pen held to his lips as he ponders his computer screen with a laptop open next to him on his desk in a home office environment.
Share Market News

What does Macquarie think Origin Energy shares are worth?

Let's see what the broker is saying about this energy giant.

Read more »

A female sharemarket analyst with red hair and wearing glasses looks at her computer screen watching share price movements.
Broker Notes

Up 34% this year, can Challenger shares keep rising according to Macquarie?

The leading broker has released a new research note.

Read more »

A man holds his head in his hands, despairing at the bad result he's reading on his computer.
Share Fallers

Guess which ASX 200 stock is crashing 42% on big news

Big bad news is weighing heavily on this stock today.

Read more »

An analyst wearing a dark blue shirt and glasses sits at his computer with his chin resting on his hands as he looks at the CBA share price movement today
Opinions

Expert's verdict on 3 ASX 200 shares (2 have doubled in value and the other has lost 29%)

Two of these stocks were the best performers of their sectors in FY25. Should you buy, hold, or sell?

Read more »