Hansen Technologies Limited (HSN) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. My name is David Trude, and as Chairman, I welcome you to the 24th Annual General Meeting of Hansen Technologies Limited. This is the fourth year our AGM is being held virtually, and we're very pleased to have everyone participating online through our virtual meeting platform provided by our share register, Link Market Services Limited. If we experience any technical issues today, a short recess or adjournment may be required depending on the number of shareholders being affected. If this occurs, I shall advise you accordingly. Voting on resolutions is open and will remain so until 5 minutes after the end of the meeting. If anyone has questions throughout today's presentation, please submit them, and we will answer them at the end of the AGM. Now for the formalities of the meeting. Notice of Meeting was duly given, and the meeting has been properly convened. We will turn to resolutions later in the meeting. Please note that only shareholders, proxyholders or shareholder company representatives may vote. I note there is a quorum present, and I declare the meeting open. Andrew Hansen, our Managing Director, can't be with us today as he is traveling for work and has sent his apologies. I would like to introduce my colleagues joining me at this AGM. Graeme Taylor, on my left, the CEO; and our Nonexecutive Directors, Bruce Adams, our Deputy Chairman; David Osborne; David Howell; Don Rankin; and Lisa Pendlebury. I would also like to introduce our Company Secretary, Julia Chand, as well as representatives from our auditors, RSM Australia Partners. Today's meeting will comprise 3 components. I will begin with some high-level commentary on Hansen's financial year '23 performance; our CEO, Graeme Taylor, will then go into greater detail of the year's highlights and the company outlook; once we have completed the presentations, we will move on to consider the formal business set out in the Notice of Meeting. Voting on the resolutions will be conducted by way of poll. Shareholders attending the meeting online will be able to cast their vote using the electronic voting card received when online registration is validated. As previously advised, voting on resolutions is open and will remain so until 5 minutes after the end of the meeting. Please refer to the virtual meeting online portal guide or use the helpline specified. Shareholders participating online through the virtual meeting website may wish to ask a question. Please click on the ask question button, type your question and click submit. [Operator Instructions] I encourage shareholders who have questions about the resolutions to submit their questions via the online platform now or as soon as possible. Shareholders' questions that are specific to a resolution will be responded to as the applicable resolution is introduced. Let us begin. To start with, let me provide you with a high-level overview of financial year '23, and how this has positioned us for this current year and beyond. Financial year '23 has been a strong year for us. Not only have we delivered outstanding results, but we have also secured new logos, upgrades and renewals with existing customers during the year. This is a well-diversified business across all key markets and the pipeline of acquisition opportunities is robust. During the global challenges over the past few years, there has been a reduction in many of the group's expenses. Financial year '23 has seen some of these expenses normalize as the group reconnects with its customers, its people and the industry. Despite this, the group continues to be a stable and consistently cash-generative business committed to reinvesting in growth. Graeme Taylor will talk later of our positive outlook for the year ahead. On a reported basis and covering each element on Slide 6, we will begin with revenue. Revenue. Our organic revenue growth of 5.2% exceeded guidance for financial year '23 and is a record revenue year for Hansen. Underlying EBITDA margin. This year, we have maintained a strong EBITDA margin of 31.9% and 33.5% for the second half of financial year '23. Net profit after tax has increased 2.1% this year. Since financial year '19, it has grown 18.8% on a compound annual growth basis. Earnings per share is up 1% versus last year. Dividends. Reflecting our strong cash position, the group has returned 47% of its net profit after tax to its shareholders. Net debt. At the end of the year, Hansen's net debt position was effectively 0 and was net cash positive in July '23. As you can see on Page 7 that since July 2020, Hansen has outperformed both the Small Ords and the All Tech Index. Consistent free cash flow has delivered an improved return to shareholders with earnings per share up over 18% on an annual compound basis since financial year '19. Hansen's strong balance sheet places the business in a great position to responsibly leverage the business to take advantage of suitable M&A opportunities. The strong cash and capital position has meant Hansen has comfortably returned approximately $212 million to its banks and shareholders since financial year '19. Aside from the sustained strong financial performance this year, the executive team has invested and focused on delivering the strong -- sorry, the long-term strategy that is a proven formula for success, treating shareholders just like their own. On behalf of the Board, I would sincerely like to thank not just our executive team but also our people all around the world for their commitment, adaptability and determination to bring prospects in on time and budget, and for again achieving the excellent results in financial year '23. Before I conclude my address and hand over the presentation to our CEO, Graeme Taylor, I would like to thank each of our shareholders for their continued loyalty and support. There is much to look forward to at Hansen as we continue to grow the company in the years ahead. I would also like to thank our fellow directors and the entire Hansen team for their continued passion and commitment in building a strong and sustainable business that delivers long-term value to our shareholders. I will now hand over to our CEO, Graeme Taylor, who will share more detail about our past year and provide more detail on the positive outlook for the future. Graeme?

Thank you, Chairman, and Good morning, everyone. Certainly, a fantastic year to sit in front of everyone and talk about our performance. I'll endeavor to add a little bit more color to what the Chairman's already spoken about. But of course, he's stolen a fair bit of the thunder as he's made his presentation. I think not only have we delivered very solid results for the year, but we've secured new logos, upgrades and renewals with existing customers. Hansen's performance around its existing customers is quite exemplary as we support everyone through what ends up being a long journey surpassing some 10 years. We've continued to rapidly pay down our debt. This is fantastic because of the fact that we can now leverage the balance sheet once again where opportunities present themselves to further expand into new markets around the world. This pipeline has never been stronger as we continue to review targets, making sure that there is a very strong fit for our business. We've retired all these borrowings during '24, reflecting the profitable and cash-generative nature of the Hansen business as we move forward. We've also uplifted our approach to ESG and continue the journey to become a globally carbon-neutral business. Turning to Page 10, I'll discuss our results in further detail. Revenue. We achieved our strongest year ever with revenue numbers in FY '23. Our revenue stream is largely recurring in nature, underpinned by strong customer relationships. Our EBITDA margin reflects the efficiency of the business and the stability we are now observing in our workforce. It is great to see many people returning to the Hansen family, as we generated a profit this year at 31.9% with a very, very strong second half, surpassing that around 33.5%. As David mentioned, net profit after tax, up by 2.1% from FY '22. Moving to Page 11. Earnings per share. We're always looking to deliver value to our shareholders, and we're very proud that our EPS has consistently grown over time, from FY '22, where it was $0.209, up to a further $0.211 in FY '23. Another measure that shareholders are interested in is our dividends. We've paid out $0.10 per share to our shareholders this year. Our dividend approach ensures we provide returns to our shareholders while maintaining sufficient capital in the business to continue our readiness for that right acquisition. Moving to Page 12. I'm very excited about how Hansen's services are used by our customers around the world for alternative energy systems such as solar, microgrids and electric vehicles. We see this potential positive for environment impacts and presents ongoing opportunities for Hansen as a business. Our customers across the world are seeking sustainable business partners and much more information on the sustainability of our operations than ever before. Since we introduced our ESG report in FY '22, we've made significant improvements to our ESG approach. In FY '23, we assessed our material ESG topics and, guided by this, we developed and shared our ESG road map. Our approach to ESG will evolve and develop over time as we measure and improve our position globally. Moving to Page 15. We've already made solid progress in the first months of FY '24 with great customer wins and extensions and upgrades. We are very proud of recently being granted Open Data Architecture, or ODA, status from the TM Forum and we are currently one of only 8 global vendors to be awarded this significant status, demonstrating the market-leading nature of our products. And we're also continuing to explore benefits from the rapid advancements that AI is delivering. We are very proud of our staff retention rights and our R&D programs continue to deliver great product enhancements on budget and on time. Turning to our guidance on Page 16. You'll see with nearly 4 months since our FY '23 results, we remain confident of achieving our guidance of between 5% and 7% organic revenue growth for FY '24. Our expected organic growth in FY '24 is anticipated to be particularly strong as we take advantage of and support the rapid changes in the energy and communications industries. Foreign exchange rates are continually providing moderate tailwinds. But given the unpredictable nature of FX, we have not increased our overall guidance revenue outcome. It's also very important to note that FX affects both revenue and costs. And with our global business, we really only see that benefit at the margin. Reflecting our careful approach to cost management, our expected FY '24 underlying EBITDA margin still remains above 30%. Recognizing how important innovation investment in our products is, and the (sic) [ our ] target for capitalized R&D as a percentage of revenue on a constant currency basis remains between 5% and 7%. Before I hand the meeting back to our Chairman, I would also like to take this opportunity to thank each and every team member around the world for their outstanding commitment and contribution during FY '23. I'd also like to thank our customers and partners for their continued loyalty and trust they place in us and finally, to our shareholders who continue to support us and join us on the journey to achieving long-term growth and value for the company. That concludes my presentation. I'll now hand back to the Chairman for the formal section of the meeting.

Thanks, Graeme. We now move on to the formal part of the meeting, matters requiring resolution, which are outlined in the Notice of Meeting. The resolutions for consideration today may only be voted on by shareholders, proxyholders and shareholder company representatives. Shareholders online through the virtual meeting website can ask question via text on each matter being put to shareholders. Those joining via the phone may also be able to ask questions verbally. Formal business. First, the consideration of accounts and reports. I wish to start by tabling the 2023 annual report containing the Directors' report, the financial statements, Directors' declaration and independent auditors report. Copies of the 2023 annual report were either distributed by post or made available online for shareholders. So for the purpose of today's meeting, I tend to assume shareholders have had sufficient opportunity to review and consider the content of the annual report. As previously commented, representatives of our auditors, RSM Australia Partners are present and available to answer questions. Are there any comments or questions regarding the various reports and financial statements contained within the 2023 annual report? Julia?

No questions, Mr. Chairman.

Moving to the resolutions. Votes can be submitted throughout the meeting and for 5 minutes after the close of the meeting. I intend to vote the open votes given me as Chairman of the meeting in favor of all resolutions. The results will be announced to the ASX after the conclusion of the meeting. I would now like to deal with the formal resolutions contained in the Notice of Meeting. The first resolution relates to the adoption of the remuneration -- the adoption of the remuneration report. At this time, I wish to advise that all directors and the executives named in the remuneration report as well as any person or party associated with any of them are excluded from voting on this resolution in respect to the shares they own or control. The resolution for consideration as a nonbinding resolution is as follows: In accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act, adopt the remuneration report for the year ended the 30 June 2023, as it appears in the directors' report within the annual report 2023. Are there any questions regarding the remuneration report via the online platform? Julia?

Yes. I have a question from our shareholder, Mr. Stephen Mayne. He has asked about the remuneration strike against -- and his question's what happened?

Stephen, thank you for your question. I think the answer is, we're not sure where the votes do lie in that case because we are -- it does not close voting until 5 minutes after the meeting. So I don't know that, that is actually -- I'm happy to answer your question afterwards when we know where the votes are. Any more questions, Julia?

No more questions for this resolution.

As there are no more questions via the online platform, I would ask the moderator if there are any questions via the phone?

Chair, there are no phone questions.

As you can see on the screen, the proxy position for the resolution prior to today's meeting. Thank you. I will now move to the remaining resolutions, each of which is an ordinary resolution requiring a 50% vote in favor to be successful. I will pass this resolution over to our Deputy Chair, Bruce Adams, to move -- to pass this resolution. Bruce?

Thank you, Chairman. We shall now consider Resolution 2: That Mr. David Trude, a Director retiring by rotation in accordance with the company's constitution and being eligible and having signified his candidature of office be and is hereby reelected a director of the company. Are there any questions regarding this Resolution 2 via the online platform?

There are no questions.

Given there are no questions via the online platform, I now ask the moderator if there are any questions via the phone?

Chair, there are no phone questions.

You can see on the screen the proxy position for the resolution prior to today's meeting. Thank you. I will now pass back to the Chairman for the remaining resolutions.

Thanks, Bruce. We shall now consider Resolution 3 that Mr. David Howell, a Director retiring by rotation in accordance with the company's constitution and being eligible and having signified his candidature for office be and hereby is reelected a Director of the company. Are there any questions regarding this Resolution 3 via the online platform? Julia?

There are no questions.

If there are no more questions via the online platform, I will now ask the moderator if there are any questions via the phone?

Chair, there are no phone questions.

Thank you. You may see on the screen the proxy position for the resolution prior to today's meeting. Thank you. We will now consider Resolution 4, that Mr. Don Rankin, a Director retiring by rotation in accordance with the company's constitution and being eligible and having signified his candidature for office be and hereby reelected a Director of the company. Are there any questions regarding this Resolution 4 via the online platform, Julia?

Yes. There is a question from shareholder, Stephen Mayne. He has asked, what are the Directors planning to respond to the big remuneration report strike today? Will they be flexible and make changes? Which proxy advisers have recommended against and why?

Stephen, we will take that under consideration when we know the final voting. Are there any more questions via the online platform, Julia?

No further questions.

If there are no more questions via the online platform, I will now ask the moderator if there are any questions via the phone.

There are no phone questions.

Thank you. You may see on the screen the proxy position for the resolution prior to today's meeting. Thank you. Resolution 5, grant of performance rights. Moving on to Resolution 5, for the purpose of Listing Rule 10.14 and for all other purposes, shareholders approve the grant of 142,631 performance rights to Mr. Andrew Hansen, under the Hansen Technologies Employee Performance Rights Plan on the terms and conditions set out in the explanatory notes. Are there any questions regarding this resolution filed by the online platform?

Yes. A question again from Stephen Mayne. He has said there aren't many companies which both -- have both a Managing Director and a CEO. Could the Chair comment on why Graeme is the voting Director as this will give the opportunity to shareholders to vote on his LTI grant as well. Why not just go with the model of joint CEOs with both sitting on the Board? And also, doesn't Andrew have enough shares that he doesn't need any more incentive grants?

Look, that's quite a complicated question, Stephen. I'm happy to take it up with you after the meeting. But my comment there is, we are -- the Board believes that the grant of performance rights to Andrew Hansen is reasonable and fair given where his remuneration is. But if that is not backed as far as shareholders are concerned, then we would look at a cash advance in its place. Are there any more questions via the online platform?

No further questions.

The phone moderator, are there any more questions?

There are no phone questions.

You can see on the screen the proxy position of the resolution prior to today's meeting. Thank you. Resolution 6, that for the purposes of Listing Rule 10.17, the maximum amount -- aggregate amount of remuneration to be paid to all Nonexecutive Directors in any financial year be increased from $780,000 to $860,000 per annum. Are there any questions regarding this Resolution 6 via the online platform? Julia?

No. No questions.

If there's no more questions via the online platform, I will ask the moderator if there are any questions via the phone?

There are no phone questions.

Thank you. You may see on the screen the proxy position for the resolution prior to today's meeting. Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, that concludes the meeting. On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank you for your support, and I now declare the meeting closed. The results of the poll will be announced to the ASX later today. Thank you for your attendance and participation in this meeting.