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Investing.com -- Shares of French energy services group Viridien rose more than 24% on Friday after the company reported third-quarter results that exceeded market forecasts, driven by strong sales in its Earth Data business.
The company’s revenue reached $313 million, above the market consensus of $277 million and Kepler Cheuvreux’s forecast of $300 million.
The Earth Data division contributed $136 million, sharply higher than the $88 million consensus and the $115 million expected by the brokerage. The Geoscience segment recorded $108 million, slightly below the $111 million consensus.
EBITDA totaled $167 million, topping both the consensus estimate of $119 million and Kepler Cheuvreux’s projection of $146 million, which was the highest on the street.
The company’s IFRS EBIT stood at $77 million, while net income reached $41 million, the research note said. Viridien’s management highlighted what it described as “market appetite for high-end data and recent M&A transactions.”
Operating cash flow was negatively affected by a $36 million movement in working capital, bringing the total impact to $82 million year to date.
Despite that, net cash flow for the quarter came in at $53 million, exceeding street expectations of $40 million and slightly below the brokerage’s own forecast of $58 million.
The company also reported that net debt after IFRS 16 liabilities was $977 million. During the period, Viridien repaid $50 million of debt, resulting in an estimated $5 million reduction in financial charges, the report said.
Viridien reaffirmed its full-year net cash flow guidance of $100 million for 2025, with $62 million already generated year to date.
Kepler Cheuvreux noted that the company expects to meet this target even without receiving any collection from Pemex, which owes an estimated $70 million.
The brokerage added that the guidance will be supported by an anticipated $10 million disposal in the fourth quarter.
The brokerage said a “positive catalyst recently happened with Pemex contacting Viridien for a partial payment of the payable,” estimated to be close to $20 million.
Kepler Cheuvreux maintained a “buy” rating on Viridien stock, with a target price of €105, representing a 37.3% potential upside from Thursday’s closing price of €76.45.
The brokerage described the quarter as “a strong beat on Q3” and said the reaffirmed guidance for $100 million in net cash flow without any Pemex proceeds was “a positive surprise.”