EQS Group - Further delays in German legislation

EQS has issued a year-end trading update, showing that it achieved its targets for number of new customers and for annually recurring revenues. However, the continuing delays to the full implementation of the whistleblowing legislation in the key German market mean that the group has missed its previously published targets for revenue and for EBITDA by €1.5m and €1.3m respectively. Guidance for FY23 now reflects an abundance of caution on the likely timing of the legislative stimulus, assuming that the law is not transposed until Q323. Our new forecasts align with the lower end of the guided range for now. Despite the delays, the shares continue to trade well below the level indicated by the DCF.