Navigating the Company Transformation

Norda Stelo, a CAD $100 million revenue, Quebec-based infrastructure engineering firm with a focus on asset management and durability, is led by CEO Alex Brisson and CFO Sébastien Lépine, and has been a Key Client of AEC Advisors since 2020.

After several challenging years, Norda Stelo was in the midst of a company transformation to refocus on the core engineering and asset durability business, with a goal of transitioning from simply “billing hours” to a true value-added pricing model.  However, in order to be successful, this transformation would require significant change throughout the organization, including a full evaluation of the business.

 

While management and the Board had a defined end goal in repositioning the company, the financial means to achieve that end was less clear.

Norda Stelo initially engaged AEC Advisors to provide a valuation of the company’s stock for internal ownership transition purposes.  However, beyond just establishing the price of the internal shares, the valuation analysis also helped to establish a framework upon which management and the Board could utilize to help drive change and create value in the organization.

 

With the right guidance on how to drive value, management was then able to begin assessing strategic options and how to best utilize the company’s capital.  AEC Advisors then developed multiple customized financial models to evaluate Norda Stelo’s capital structure and stress-test various strategic options, including potential divestitures, acquisitions, stock buybacks, and dividends.

Armed with the right tools and data, Norda Stelo’s management and Board was able to successfully navigate the transformation of the company.  The company bought back 48% of outstanding shares, refocused on the core business, and launched Stelar, an internally-developed asset durability SaaS solution for public infrastructure and industrial assets.