Hello, everybody, and welcome to the Byggmax Group Q4 interim report. My name is Elliot, and I'll be coordinating your call today. If you would like to register a question during today's event, please press star one on your telephone keypad. I would now like to hand over to Karl Sandlund, CEO. Please go ahead.
Thank you very much, and again, a very warm welcome to this conference call, where we will present Byggmax Group's year-end report for 2025. I'm Karl Sandlund, the CEO, and with me is Helena, of course, our CFO. As always, the presentation we will be referring to is available on our website, and we will try to direct you to the relevant section during this call. I'll start with a brief business update, followed by Helena's walkthrough of the financials. After the presentations, we will open the floor for questions. Let's begin, and please go to page number two in the presentation. For Byggmax, 2025 has been a strong year. We defined clear focus areas for the year, and through determined efforts, we have secured both increased profitability and a further strengthened financial position.
And I will come back to some of the drivers for this later, but start with the risk overall results. Our EBITDA margin increased to 5.9% for the full year, and that's two percentage points higher than in 2024. Earnings per share were SEK 3.25 , almost tripled versus the year before. If we instead look from a balance sheet perspective, when we closed 2025, we had a net debt of SEK 354 million, and this year level is the lowest we've had for more than 10 years, a clear sign of our successful work when it comes to secure a strong financial position. Our like-for-like sales growth was 3.4% for the full year, and that's despite a refined e-com assortment, which led to lower sales.
The growth was supported by well-functioning supply chains and very high standards in our stores. If we zoom in on the fourth and final quarter of the year, which is part of our low season, it's a quite small quarter for us. We see a quarter where we continue to improve profitability, but sales was down somewhat negatively impacted by currency effects and, as mentioned, the streamlining of our e-com business. So overall, a year of further improvements where we see the effects of the focus on our core. In recognition of the group's solid financial position, the board has decided to propose to the annual general meeting a dividend of SEK 1.65 per share, and that's more than double versus last year.
Before we get into more details, on slide three, a short overview for those who may not know us that well. We were founded back in 1993, and today we have 212 stores across four Nordic markets. Our core is built on a strong selection of products for home renovation and maintenance for consumers. We offer primarily building materials, but also paint, tiles, flooring, and more. Our in-store assortment is enhanced by online, providing an even wider range, home delivery, and also customized products. We are a true discount retailer, and offering the best prices requires maintaining the lowest possible cost. Our store design not only keeps operational costs low, but also ensures an efficient shopping experience, which our customers highly appreciate.
In addition to the Byggmax brand, we have Right Price Tiles in Norway, focusing on tiles and bathroom, and Skånska Byggvaror, which offers product and buildings for home and garden, such as conservatories and greenhouses. If we move to page five, we have some brief macro context. Overall, the market showed significant variations during the last year. Developments differed between categories, but also markets and seasons. The year began with more positive consumer sentiments, but during the spring, households became more cautious again, with quite sharp dip in consumer confidence in both Sweden and Denmark. This coincidence matched with a time when many customers start or are planning their larger outdoor projects.
During the second half of the year, consumer confidence once again improved, but in Sweden, the index has actually still been below the level shown in 2024. So in summary, a market with significant variations, where some categories developed strongly, while others have not yet gained full momentum. If we continue to the next slide, number five, for an overview of our focus areas. Over the past year, we have focused on further improving our profitability through three main areas. And one is to be close to our customers. It's two, to drive volume of sales, and three, do this while maintaining operational excellence. And this focus has touched, I would say, every part of the organization, from the work we do in our stores, to e-com channels, to admin and business development.
Through the hard work and strong dedication of our teams, we have, as you know, improved profitability, while we also built a business that is both flexible and robust, making us very well prepared for the future. To give some examples of the improvements we have made in terms of customer experience, you can look at page number six. For example, a large number of our stores have been rearranged to better present our assortment and make it easier for customers to find what they are looking for. Combined with improved customer flows and more self-service checkouts, customers are offering even smoother purchasing experience.
We have also continued to develop the digital support tools we offer to our customers, and this includes expanded functionality in our employees' handheld devices, so the strengthening of our customer support functions, and also the continued development of, for example, our AI-driven shop-in-shop on our website. It's a function that supports customers with their projects and also adds the selected product directly to their shopping carts. We also see improvements in customer experience when it comes to our customized product offering, where enhanced online tools have been one key contributor to increased sales of windows, doors, and cabinets during the year. On page number seven, you see some of the actions we have done to make sure that we can also increase volumes.
One main thing was that in 2025, we put a significant amount of effort into securing a very strong season ramp-up, resulting in high standards across our stores. Staffing levels were increased earlier to ensure full service capacity from the start of the season, while improved supply planning strengthened service levels and our product availability. And this position had been maintained throughout the year, supporting volume and sales by minimizing out-of-stock situations. We also continued to develop both customized products and our private label range. Our modular houses, for example, were expanded with additional options, allowing customers to tailor size, design, and features to broaden their intended use. And we expanded also our private label, offering in greenhouses and conservatories, with several new products showing strong performance during the year. As mentioned, within e-com, we have refined the assortment to increase relevance and profitability.
And while this had a negative impact on sales, it has strengthened margins and also improved the quality of our online sales. In current market position, this operational control is extra important. Please see page number eight. Operational excellence is always one of our most important priorities, and we dedicate a lot of time and energy to secure a strong performance. Starting from a very efficient cost position, where we have reduced our OpEx, two years in a row, we managed last year to keep it almost stable. In total, OpEx grew by 2%, which I would say is a strong performance, taking into account volume, inflation, and the very low starting point.
We have also continued to have very efficient supply flows, despite improving the service levels, product availability, we have managed to have slightly lower inventory than the year before. And also, our revised logistics setups has not only improved the control over the transportation flows, but also made it possible to reduce costs and also enable us to increase volumes very efficiently. You will now hear a little bit more about the financials and figures from Helena, and I will come back at the end.
Thank you, Karl. On slide nine, we can see how our focus areas, as just described by Karl, are clearly reflected in our financial performance. Here, we show the development of sales and EBITDA margin on a rolling twelve-month basis, quarterly, over the last three years. In a period of uneven demand, we have improved the EBITDA margin for seven consecutive quarters, and the full year rolling twelve margin amounts to 5.9%. The sales levels are still below those of 2022. This year's sales is more in line with 2023, while at the same time, the EBITDA margin has doubled. This clearly shows that the improvement in profitability is a result of structural improvements in gross margin, cost base, and ways of working. Our strategy in the period of simplifying and clear focus on our core business has paid off.
Strong operational excellence, as described by Karl, is a clear focus areas for us. Over the past years, we have adopted our cost base, focused on core business and simplification, while maintaining flexibility in the organization. After two years of significant cost reductions, both personnel and other operating expenses. We have, in 2025, developed costs in a controlled manner, despite inflation and increased activity levels. The number of stores remains largely unchanged in 2025, and we have built a cost structure that is robust and scalable, both up and down. On slide 11, we summarize the profit development for the full year. EBITDA amounts to SEK 361 million, corresponding to a margin, EBITDA margin of 5.9%, compared to with 3.9% the previous year.
The improvement is driven by both higher sales and strength and gross margin, combined with continuous strong cost control. The net sales increased by 2.5% during the year, with sales negatively impacted by currency, primarily from the Norwegian krona, by approximately -1.1%. In addition, our active and deliberate assortment decisions within e-com have had a negative short-term impact on sales of around -1.5%, fully in line with our strategy to simplify and focus on improved profitability. Gross margin in the period has been strengthened by a combination of factors, an improved product mix, purchasing initiatives, including early supplier payments with cash discounts, a more focused e-com offering with improved logistics and low inventory waste levels in the year.
In addition to the sales and margin, the lower investment level has contributed to reduced depreciation, which further strengthened the EBITDA. If we look specifically at the fourth quarter, the improvement is largely in line with the full year, but with somewhat weaker sales development. Like for like, sales in the fourth quarter declined by 0.8%, while EBITDA in the quarter improved by SEK 30 million to -SEK 39 million, fully in line with our seasonal pattern. Finally, on slide 12, you see how the improved profitability also transfer into strengthened balance sheet and cash. Cash flow from operating activities, driven by improved earnings and gradual reduction in capital binding. Investment levels remained disciplined. We continue to invest in areas that strengthen the customer experience, while ensuring that the store network is well-maintained. During the year, we have 1 new store opening.
This is a net debt, excluding IFRS 16 at year-end, now at SEK 354 million, compared to SEK 618 million previous year. The net debt in relation to EBITDA performance strengthened to 0.7x, down from 1.6 x last year. The low leverage gives us both stability and flexibility and ability going forward. And as Karl mentioned, we have maintaining the flexibility to continue developing the business. With that, I conclude the financial update, and I hand back to Karl before we open up for questions.
Thank you, Helena, and please move to page 13, I think it is. Our key messages again. Last year was a very strong year for Byggmax, with improved profitability and a solid financial position, where the board proposes an increased dividend. Our strategic efforts have secured a solid foundation with an correct assortment, high customer satisfaction, and very short lead times. During 2026, we will continue to improve our core business. Focus will be on becoming even more relevant to our customers, increasing sales within our existing infrastructure, and continuing to drive high efficiency across the entire organization. With our strong foundation, our short lead times, and our dedicated teams, we are very well prepared for 2026.
Finally, before I conclude, I would like to highlight our employees, who have delivered this strong year, and also to our customers and shareholders for their trust. Together, we have taken important steps forward, and we look to the future with confidence. With that, thank you a lot for your attention, and we're now happy to answer your questions.
Thank you. If you would like to ask a question, please press star followed by one on your telephone keypad. If you would like to withdraw your question, please press star followed by two. When preparing to ask your question, please ensure your device is unused locally. First question comes from Benjamin Wahlstedt with ABG. Your line is open. Please go ahead.
Good morning. I was wondering if you could give us some flavor on the market growth in the quarter, please. Byggmaterialindex that was out a couple of days ago was very positive. Do you have any insight into the relative performance when it comes to B2C and the B2B part of the market, respectively? Thank you.
Thank you, Benjamin. Well, as mentioned, we've seen market with significant variations where some categories are developing strongly, while others have not yet gained full momentum. I guess that also makes comparison based on aggregated sales figures quite challenging. We still see some lower volume in larger projects, and at the same time, we see solid development in smaller projects and products, including garden buildings, but also bathroom, actually. When it comes to the Byggmaterialindex , the market statistics within my read of the index and the press release itself was that, the ROT tax deduction in Sweden had significant effect on that index towards the end of the year.
We primarily sell to private individuals doing their own DIY projects, so that is nothing with a large effect impacting us. Looking at our total sales for a year, like-for-like was, as mentioned, 3.4%, and that was with shortened, refined e-com assortment offering that actually reduced our sales, as Helena mentioned, by some 1.4%-1.5%. I think, you know, looking at that total figure, I would say that we have a strong position and we maintain a strong position on the markets.
Perfect. Thank you. Second question. During 2025 and 2024, for that matter, you've improved your gross margin to an all-time high level. You mentioned several drivers over the last two years, including product mix, better shipping prices online, cash discounts, et cetera. I was wondering if you could give us some flavor on the relative importance of these factors, and then perhaps say what factors you believe could drive incremental gross margin gains in 2026, if any? Thank you.
Well, thanks again, Benjamin. If I start, Helena, you might add on to my answer. As you said, Benjamin, the gross margin is driven by several factors, right? Demand has been more tilted than usual towards categories or projects with higher margin. That is one impacting factors. In addition, we have made improvements to our e-com when it comes to assortment and logistics, which have a positive effect on the margin. We have effect from purchasing actions and early payment, and also from very low waste levels. So there are several factors contributing to the outcome. In addition to our own measures, margins are subject to market conditions. It's demand patterns, currency, and so on.
Our ambition is naturally always to optimize net income, and volume margin and costs are key drivers for this. We don't guide on specific ones of them, and it's hard to specify amounts, but I don't know if you would elaborate, Helena, or if it's possible to give some more insights.
Thank you. Correctly, we have sort of clustered the four drivers. It's own matters, but as said, it's also the competitive situation and market conditions. The proportions of them, the success of them this year, I would say that they're fairly redistributed equally between the four factors for the full year.
Perfect. Thank you very much. That's all I had for now.
Thank you, Benjamin.
As another reminder, if you'd like to ask a question, please press star one on your telephone keypad now. We now turn to Niklas Ekman with DNB Carnegie. Your line is open. Please go ahead.
Thank you. Can I just follow up on the gross margin question? Because it is a pretty dramatic increase of the gross margin, not just in the last two years, but in the past five to six years. I noticed that your margins, the gross margin now is 36%. It's up 2.5% in the past two years, but it's 5-6 percentage points above pre-COVID levels. And I'm wondering kind of the same thing here, if when market conditions normalize, do you see that growth then in other categories might drive that lower?
And this might not be necessarily negative for the EBIT margin, but is it likely in a more normalized market that you'll see a different gross margin development without necessarily pushing the EBIT margin lower? If you could just elaborate on that, it would be interesting.
Well, thank you, Niklas. I will start with repeating myself and then try to give some more. But as I mentioned, it's a margin driven by several factors, where one of them is the product mix, right? And where demand has been more tilted towards maybe the smaller projects with higher margin. That said, if you compare us with who we were like five years ago, we had a different offering, we had a different assortment. We have also added more companies to the group. We have Right Price Tiles and also others, right? So I would say that comparing to two to five years ago, we have changed our assortment and have an assortment with slightly higher margin. So that is a change towards a couple of years ago.
When it comes to more recent development, I think I need to, you know, refer to the answer to Benjamin, right? So that it's a combination of things that we have really focused on and tried hard, but also market. And it's hard to predict it too, when it comes to the market side of it.
Okay, fair enough. Thanks. Second question, just on OpEx. 'Cause I noticed, after quite a few quarters now with either declining OpEx or even, or just a slight increase, we saw a greater increase in this quarter. And I know it's a small quarter, and there might be kind of one-off shifts or differences in comparisons. But do you see, going forward, any shift here that maybe your OpEx growth is going to pick up a little bit in coming quarters, and you kind of come to the end of the line in terms of cost reductions?
Yeah, again, thanks, Niklas. Well, we are a true discount retailer, and being cost efficient is a major part of our DNA. We always try to make sure to be as efficient as possible, to find new ways to increase efficiency. That said, it's of course getting harder and harder to reduce cost, right? And I think it's more important to make sure that we have high productivity. During last year, we increased our OpEx with 2%, as mentioned, and that is, you know, including volume inflation and well, leases for facilities and so on, right? So I think we're very efficient, taking into account a very low starting point. The fourth quarter is a small one, so I think that impacts, you know, if you look at the second quarter.
Looking forward, we, you know, we try to be as efficient as possible. And then I think also we should differ between cost driving sales and the cost that you just need to have. And, of course, if we find opportunities to drive more sales by adding, for example, more marketing spend, that might be something that adds some, increases our OpEx. But, overall, we will continue to be as cost efficient as possible. And I think, you know, especially during the smaller quarters, it could, you know, go up and down a little bit more than if you look at the average during the year.
Very clear. Thank you for taking my questions.
Thank you.
We now turn to Thomas Björklund, a private investor. Your line is open, please go ahead.
Hello, Thomas Björklund here. First of all, I would like to congratulate you to building a much stronger Byggmax during the last two to three years. My question is, first of all, your CapEx for 2026, will that be, like, relatively similar to 2025, I think? As I understand the report, you will not focus that much on store expansion, more on what you have, right?
Thank you, Thomas. Well, when it comes to store cycle, we will open and also look for attractive spots for more stores. We hope to be able to offer more building material shops, stores close to customers so they can buy low price building materials from us. So we are also looking for more places.
That said, you know, we think that there is also a good amount of potential in increasing volume in our existing portfolio. When it comes to store changes this spring, and just to mention a few, we opened a new showroom in Gothenburg, Skånska Byggvaror this spring. We reopen our Byggmax store in Stenungsund, and we have a move of a store in Tønsberg, in Norway. So there is things happening also in the store portfolio. But you know, store expansion is one lever for growth, but we have several of them.
I just noticed that, I mean, your free cash flow is much higher than the reported profits, and that is due to that you expanded the store network heavily four, five, six years back, and now not in the same pace, at least. Will the depreciations come down quite dramatically in 2026 if you don't expand as fast as before? Or even regardless, because was it five y ears depreciation time, and that will now begin to taper off quite quickly?
Yes, thank you. In general, as we saw on the report, which presented for the full year, I had a positive impact on depreciation already this year. So that is correct. It will go down slightly further to some extent, although some of the investments we did in the earlier period, as you spoke about, is also acquisitions. But there are and in this sort of investment level that we have now, we also covered some of the CapEx for new stores, there were three new stores last year.
And we have one new store this year. So to also the cost conscious is also in our store openings. We do it in a sort of more balanced way than we have had it done historically as well.
My last question is, Skånska Byggvaror was acquired, like, acquired about 10 years ago. I believe you have depreciated trademarks and the customer relationships by SEK 40 million per year or so. Was that now fully depreciated, like, end of November 2025?
That is correct. We will have approximately SEK 40 million on a yearly basis, less on amortization.
Okay, thank you. That was all from me.
Thanks.
We have no further questions. I'll hand back to Karl Sandlund for any final remarks.
Well, thank you a lot for attending this call and for all your questions. If we do not meet you before, we are really looking forward to meet you again after our Q1 report in the mid of April. Thank you a lot. Bye.
Ladies and gentlemen, today's call is now concluded. We'd like to thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect your lines.