Alexander Fernandes, CEO of Avigilon, is photographed along-side a screen displaying a live video feed of himself by one of his high-definition surveillance cameras at the Avigilon factory in Richmond, B.C. Since going public in November, 2011, Avigilon’s stock is up a stunning 235 per cent.Rafal Gerszak/The Globe and Mail
Little-known name. Major returns.
That's the story of Vancouver-based Avigilon Corp. so far. With a market value of just over $580-million, the company isn't a blue-chip name just yet, but things are looking like it could be in no time.
Why? Since going public in November, 2011, Avigilon's stock is up a stunning – even mind-blowing – 235 per cent.
For those who've never heard the name, Avigilon makes high-definition surveillance cameras. When the company went public in 2011, the majority of cameras in use around the world were analog, which meant their images were grainy and not making life easy for people watching them. (More on the company in this story I wrote for Report on Business Magazine.)
Avigilon not only saw the chance to flood the market with top-notch quality cameras, but it also developed a high-definition streaming service that enabled the cameras to transmit their images with much less bandwidth than most HD cameras.
Another driver: Avigilon sells the majority of its cameras outside of Canada, and almost half of its revenue comes from outside North America. In other words, lots of global growth potential.
Now, let's not get ahead of ourselves. The company still isn't crazy profitable. Avigilon posted a first-quarter profit of just $2.8-million late last week. But the trend lines are encouraging. Net income has been rising steadily and revenues are growing each quarter, according to Capital IQ. First-quarter revenue of $32-million was up 80 per cent from the same period the year prior.
Which makes me think: maybe I shouldn't have written about this stock, and just bought it instead.
(Tim Kiladze is a Globe and Mail Reporter.)
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Tim Kiladze