← Weekly analysesHome
mttssn research · Nordic Deep Dive
Hacksaw (HACK.ST)
Teknik & Gaming · B2B iGaming-innehall (slots/skraplotter) · LTM Q1 2026
Analysis date: 2026-06-07
Price at analysis: SEK 81.20
Method: mttssn_streamlined_v1
Conviction: MEDIUM
BUY
Conviction: MEDIUM
A rare clean compounder: 82% adjusted EBIT margin, debt-free with SEK 1.9bn net cash, 100% organic growth of 35-43% constant currency, and a spotless APM (0.0% divergence, no PPA/SBC add-backs). The reverse-DCF pays nothing for terminal growth at SEK 81.2, so any durable mid-single-digit-plus growth is upside. ROIC is mathematically meaningless (capital-light) — value it on earnings. BUY, medium.
Adj. ROIC
610.5%
WACC 8% → spread +602.5pp
Economic Profit
+SEK 1,704M
SEK +1,704M; ~= NOPAT (capital charge trivial)
FCF Yield
7.5%
~89% conversion; SEK 1,614M LTM
Price / Target
SEK 81 → SEK 105
+29% base; BUY
Revenue (LTM)
SEK 2.3B
LTM EUR 210M; 100% organic, +37% cc
EBIT Margin
79.9%
82% adj EBIT (80% reported) - genuine, verified
EV / IC
76.28×
Enterprise value / invested capital
Net Debt
n/a
Net cash SEK 1,902M; debt-free
Thesis

Hacksaw is a B2B iGaming content studio: it develops slots and scratchcards and distributes them — plus third-party studios' games via its OpenRGS platform — to operators on a GGR rev-share basis across 35+ licensed markets. The economics are exceptional: 82% adjusted EBIT margin, EUR 176M net cash, no debt, no goodwill, ~89% FCF conversion. A 320-game back-catalogue provides an annuity that funds new launches.

Adjusted NOPAT of SEK ~1,727M sits on an invested-capital base of just ~SEK 283M (12% of revenue), so ROIC (610%) is a meaningless artefact — this is an earnings/FCF story, not a capital-efficiency one. The whole question is the durability of 35-43% organic growth as US/regulated markets open and competition (Pragmatic Play, Evolution-owned studios) intensifies.

Valuation · reverse-DCF & scenarios

Capitalising adjusted NOPAT of SEK 1,727M at WACC-g and adding SEK 1,902M net cash over 289.2M shares: zero-growth fair value = SEK 81 (= the price), 2% = SEK 106 (+31%), 5% = SEK 206. The market is pricing in ~0% perpetual growth on a business compounding 35-43% organically — the reverse-DCF margin of safety is the gap between that implied-zero and any realistic terminal rate.

Base SEK 105 (+29%) on a conservative ~2% terminal embedded in a multi-year high-growth fade; bull SEK 150 if US/regulated expansion sustains 30%+ growth and margins hold; bear SEK 60 (-26%) if growth decelerates sharply, a key market re-regulates, or margins normalise toward peers.

Market-implied growth
-6.3%
NOPAT CAGR over 5y the EV already requires
No-growth value / share
SEK 106
130% of price; rest = priced-in growth
ROIC − WACC
+602.5 pp
ROIC 610.5% vs WACC 8.0% — positive = value creation
CAP (priced-in)
0.0 yrs
years of excess returns the price implies (fades to WACC)

The market pays today’s enterprise value for roughly -6.3% NOPAT growth over 5 years. The business earns 610% on capital against a 8% cost of capital (spread +602.5 pp); the no-growth value is SEK 106/share (130% of price), so the rest is priced-in growth.

Scenario24m targetImpl. gUpsideProb.Driver
BullSEK 150+9%+85%35%US/regulated expansion sustains 30%+ growth, margins hold
BaseSEK 105-0%+29%45%Conservative ~2% embedded terminal; high-growth fade
BearSEK 60-13%-26%20%Growth decelerates / market re-regulates / margin normalises
Prob-weightedSEK 112+38%100%Scenario-weighted expected value

Sensitivity — fair value / share at WACC × growth

WACC \ g0%3%5%8%10%15%
6.50%143162177201218267
7.25%121138150170184225
8.00% (base)106120130147159194
8.75%94106115130140170
9.50%8596103116125152

Green = fair value above the current price of SEK 81.20. The reverse-DCF conclusion is dominated by WACC and growth — see the whole surface, not a single fair value.

Method & data. NOPAT SEK 1,727, invested capital and ROIC 610.5% are observed (adjustments.json); WACC 8.0% and terminal g 2.5% are assumptions. EV→equity uses net debt SEK -1,902. The model holds ROIC constant (no fade) over the explicit horizon; the CAP figure instead fades excess returns to WACC.

⤓ Download the full model (.xlsx) — formula-driven sheets; flex the blue input cells and the model cascades in Excel.

Key drivers

1. Ultra-high margins

82% adjusted EBIT margin, ~89% FCF conversion — a capital-light cash machine; every growth dollar drops through.

2. Organic growth engine

+28% reported / +37% cc in Q1 2026, 100% organic; 320-game portfolio, 27 launches in the quarter, OpenRGS adding third-party studios.

3. Net-cash optionality

SEK 1.9bn net cash funds Hacksaw Ventures minority studio stakes and US expansion (Connecticut licence) without dilution or debt.

4. Reverse-DCF embeds zero growth

Price pays nothing for terminal growth vs 35-43% cc actual — the margin of safety if growth proves even modestly durable.

5. Clean accounting

APM divergence 0.0%, no goodwill, no PPA, no SBC add-back — earnings quality is as high as the headline margin.

Key risks
Conclusion

Hacksaw is the rare 'cheap and exceptional' profile: a debt-free, net-cash, 82%-margin organic compounder with spotless accounting, where the reverse-DCF pays nothing for terminal growth. We rate it BUY, medium conviction; base target SEK 105 (+29%).

Conviction is capped at medium only by the short public track record and the inherent regulatory/hit risk of iGaming content — not by anything in the numbers, which are pristine. Watch growth durability and regulatory headlines as the thesis triggers.

Quality · Buffett tenets12 / 15
Understandable business
B2B iGaming content supplier — builds slots/scratchcards, licenses them to operators on a rev-share/GGR basis. Simple model, but only a ~2-year listed track record (IPO'd late 2024/25), so history is short.
Durable moat
320-game back-catalogue annuity + OpenRGS third-party studio platform (9 studios) create content scale and distribution density across 35+ licensed markets; top-10 games now only 43% of GGR (de-concentrating). Real but young moat in a competitive supplier market (Pragmatic, Evolution).
Able & honest management
Founder-led; clean reporting (APM divergence 0.0%, no PPA/SBC add-back games); minority bought out via share swap with zero goodwill; disciplined Hacksaw Ventures minority stakes funded from FCF, not debt. Candid, rational capital allocation.
Financial strength
82% adjusted EBIT margin, debt-free, EUR 176M net cash, 89% FCF conversion, ~5% effective tax. Returns on capital are off-the-scale (IC just 12% of revenue). Survives any bad year trivially.
Margin of safety
Reverse-DCF zero-growth fair value = SEK 81.2 = the current price, i.e. the market pays nothing for terminal growth against 35-43% cc organic growth. Modest cushion, contingent on growth durability — not a deep discount.