Next 15 Group: marketing a recovery

Next 15 (LON:NFG) is a company that has not really appeared on my radar before. The size of the company, its rating, and the type of industry meant that it passed me by. However, recent falls in the share price have been brutal. A profit warning combined with the general malaise in AIM means the shares are now trading on a forward P/E of just 5. It seems to me that the company is worth looking at in more detail.

Summary

Next 15 (LON:NFG) is a mid-cap, AIM-listed company that aims to help companies tackle their thorniest, most complex and most important challenges by combining growth consulting with marketing services, data and technology platforms and business transformation projects. The company has been highly acquisitive over the years. Initially, to build scale within its marketing and communications business by adding additional agency brands. Latterly, to shift the business towards growth consultancy, it has acquired companies such as Mach49.Historically, the company has been a strong performer. Between 2015 and 2022, the share price came close to 10-bagging. Since 2022, their revenue has risen 56%, and historical EPS more than trebled, with a ROCE that has averaged 20%. Yet the shares...