• Revenue: EUR22,096 million, down 2% year on year at constant currency.
• Operating Margin: 13.3% of revenue, stable year on year.
• Organic Free Cash Flow: EUR1,961 million, in line with the 2024 target.
• Normalized EPS: EUR12.23, down 1.7% year on year.
• Bookings: EUR23,821 million, with a book-to-bill ratio of 1.08.
• Net Profit Group Share: EUR1,671 million, up 0.5% year on year.
• Basic EPS: EUR9.82, increased by 1.2%.
• Net Debt: EUR2.1 billion at the end of 2024.
• Headcount: 341,100 employees, up 5.2% year on year.
• Attrition Rate: 15.7%, down 1 point year on year.

• Warning! GuruFocus has detected 8 Warning Signs with ASX:MND.

Release Date: February 18, 2025

For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.

Positive Points

• Capgemini SE (CAPMF) demonstrated resilience in a challenging market, maintaining an operating margin of 13.3% despite a revenue decline.
• The company achieved a robust book-to-bill ratio of 1.08, indicating strong commercial momentum.
• Organic free cash flow remained strong at EUR1,961 million, aligning with the 2024 target.
• Capgemini SE (CAPMF) made significant strides in AI and generative AI, with these technologies accounting for around 5% of Q4 bookings.
• The company achieved major progress in its ESG roadmap, reducing absolute emissions by 35% compared to 2019 and increasing the share of renewable energy to 98%.

Negative Points

• Revenues decreased by 2% year on year at constant currency, with a notable slowdown in France and the manufacturing sector.
• The financial services sector only returned to growth in Q4, indicating earlier struggles.
• Operating margin in France decreased by 240 basis points year on year due to lower activity levels.
• Attrition increased slightly over the past quarter, bringing the last 12-month attrition rate to 15.7%.
• The company faces a challenging geopolitical and economic environment, leading to a cautious outlook with a wide growth bracket from minus 2% to plus 2% for 2025.

Q & A Highlights

Q: Can you elaborate on the outlook for H1 and H2, particularly regarding growth in North America and discretionary spending differences between regions? A: For H1, we expect constant currency growth to align with Q4 levels. While we don't see signs of deterioration, we remain cautious due to geopolitical and economic uncertainties. Discretionary spending has returned in financial services, but remains tight elsewhere, with a focus on efficiency and new technologies like AI and cloud. We aim to improve sales effectiveness to drive growth.

Q: What is the expected inorganic contribution to growth, and how does generative AI impact the IT services sector? A: The inorganic contribution is expected to be 1 to 2 points. Generative AI, like DeepSeek, offers lighter-weight models for edge deployment and is open-source, allowing better fine-tuning. AI remains a top investment priority, driving both productivity gains and new business opportunities, such as mainframe modernization.

Q: What are the sources for margin improvement in 2025, and are there any planned changes in the cost structure? A: Margin improvement will primarily come from portfolio mix enhancements and operational efficiencies, including better utilization and G&A management. We aim to increase sales efficiency to get more value from our sales investments.

Q: Can you discuss the free cash flow generation and headcount strategy for 2025? A: We aim to maintain a free cash flow to net income ratio above 1, focusing on financial discipline. Despite a challenging environment, we expect similar cash flow levels as 2024. Headcount growth is focused on high-demand areas like financial services and digital core, with efficiency gains in other areas.

Q: How do you plan to manage the French business's profitability given its decline? A: France's margin is sensitive to activity levels. We expect gradual activity improvement, but full margin recovery will take time. The primary lever for margin improvement is regaining activity levels.

Q: What is the expected M&A contribution for 2025, and how does it align with your strategy? A: We anticipate a 1 to 2 point M&A contribution, primarily from bolt-on acquisitions. While we remain open to larger acquisitions, current focus is on smaller, strategic additions.

Q: How are customers funding AI investments, and what impact does this have on other IT spending? A: AI is a priority due to its perceived value and ROI. Clients are reallocating budgets towards AI, impacting other investments. Most projects now have an AI component, similar to past trends with digital and cloud technologies.

Q: Are customers demanding pricing efficiencies due to Gen AI's impact on delivery costs? A: Yes, customers expect cost improvements from Gen AI, which we incorporate into our offerings. While not yet large-scale, these efficiencies are part of our competitive strategy, with incremental productivity gains passed to clients.

For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.