Last year was a touch disappointing for many of Australia's leading tech companies. But after a slow start the S&P/ASX 200 Info Tech (Index: ^AXIJ) (ASX: XIJ) index managed to make significant progress to finish the year with a gain of around 2%.
I expect the sector will perform far stronger this year and believe the following two shares could be ones to watch:
Aconex Ltd (ASX: ACX)
Although its shares are still on the expensive side, if the company delivers on its multi-year guidance then I believe that patient investors will be rewarded handsomely. The cloud collaboration platform provider for the construction industry has forecast for revenue growth in excess of 45% in FY 2017. After which it expects growth of up to 25% per annum through to FY 2019. Furthermore, as it scales it expects its margins to widen. In FY 2016 Aconex had an EBITDA margin of 11%, but by FY 2019 its EBITDA margin is predicted to widen to as much as 22%. It is worth noting that these forecasts were made prior to Donald Trump's election victory. If Trump follows through on his proposed trillion-dollar infrastructure projects then I believe Aconex could see demand for its services rise sharply.
Intiger Group Ltd (ASX: IAM)
Fintech company Intiger is a relatively new listing on the ASX. Since completing its reverse takeover of rare earth and uranium explorer Star Striker Limited in August its share price has more than doubled. It's no surprise to see why investors have piled into Intiger in my opinion.
The company aims to become the number one provider of offshore processing and fintech solutions to the Australian financial planning industry. With back office costs in the industry spiralling out of control, Intiger's belief that it can reduce back office costs for financial planners by 40% through its platforms and offshore processing is a compelling proposition. Whilst it is still early days for Intiger, I believe the company does have strong potential. I would suggest limiting any investment to just a small part of your portfolio at this point in time.
