Bechtle’s fears confirmed in Q3 results

More of the same as German reseller reports revenue growth amid ‘reluctance’ from businesses to invest

Bechtle shared disappointing Q3 FY24 results, impacted by what it described as the reluctance of businesses to invest in France and Germany.

Revenue reached €1.51bn (£1.25bn), a 2.2 per cent increase compared with last year (€1.48bn in Q3 FY23).

Business volume fell in line with expectations at €1.89bn and EBT descended to €78.5m, respectively dipping by 1.1 per cent and 16.3 per cent year-on-year.

International earnings rose by 5.9 per cent year-on-year to €597.6m, allowing the reseller to keep its head above water.

But a small revenue decrease (0.1 per cent) in Germany brought the numbers down, as Becthle’s home country still represents over 60 per cent of its global revenue.

“Overall, we are not satisfied with the third-quarter business development,” said Dr Thomas Olemotz, CEO of Bechtle.

“Our SME customers - especially in our most important markets, France and Germany -remain reluctant to invest, but we are delighted by the growth exhibited by our international companies, which is further confirmation that our European M&A strategy is the right course to take.”

France and Germany’s reluctance to invest, especially in the B2B sector, is a negative trend that prevailed through Q1 and Q2 this year.

On the other hand, the UK is among the reseller’s most profitable subsidiaries this year, alongside Austria, Switzerland, and Belgium.

Domestic business volume sank by eight per cent because of a large-volume software project that had a positive impact on Q3 2023, an achievement that did not repeat this year.

Despite no longer expecting to achieve the adjusted forecast, Bechtle keeps hope in Q4 FY24 as the reseller is forecasting growth to be driven by its recent buyouts and its business to government (B2G) customers.

Bechtle's acquisitions also caused a small rise in headcount, as the company now counts 768 employees, 70 per cent of which were gained through this year’s buyouts in Spain (iDooTech), Italy (MMN) and the UK (Driveworks, Qolcom).