For a while it looked like nothing could stop Hipages Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: HPG).
After listing on the ASX in late 2020, the online 'tradie marketplace' didn't take long to reward its investors.
Less than a year after making its ASX debut, the Hipages share price was up more than 60%.
The ASX tech company rode a wave of enthusiasm as investors scrambled to throw money at tech companies in the early stages of the COVID pandemic.
Then things changed and the Hipages share price started to plunge.
In September 2021, Hipages shares were changing hands for $4.10 each.
Nine months later, the Hipages share price had sunk to $0.88, shedding more than 75% of its value over that timeframe.
What happened?
Hipages CEO Roby Sharon-Zipser attributes the rapid decline in his company's fortunes to COVID-era macroeconomic factors such as greater movement restrictions placed on tradies as the pandemic played out.
But he said Hipages' misfortune motivated him to restructure the company in such a way that it would no longer be so affected by macroeconomic conditions.
And the strategic shifts appears to be paying off.
In 2023 Hipages became a profitable company for the first time in 20 years.
More recently, Hipages has been enjoying a resurgence of investor enthusiasm.
In June this year, the company's share price sunk below $0.80.
Today, Hipages shares are trading at around $1.35 each, up 40% in the past month, and almost 70% in the past few months.
Sharon-Zipser said FY25 was a pivotal year of strategic delivery for Hipages.
The company stated it successfully migrated its customer base onto a new single tradie platform, Tradiecore.
Sharon-Zipser said Hipages also introduced new pricing plans in Australia and subscription model implementation in New Zealand.
I'm incredibly proud of the efforts of the team to deliver these key strategic milestones while continuing our strong growth trajectory.
To have achieved our guidance for revenue growth, EBITDA margin and free cash flow, while undertaking the most complex technology implementation in our history, is a huge
achievement.
Hipages stated it achieved its FY25 guidance of 10% revenue growth, with total revenue coming in at $83.1 million for FY25.
The company also reported a net profit after tax of $2.4 million and increased its free cash flow to $5.6 million, up 164% on the previous year.
Investors responded positively to Hipages' results announcement on Friday.
The company's share price continues to lift following the upbeat presentation, with Hipages shares up around 5% on Monday.
Where to from here?
Sharon-Zipser said Hipages will continue to capitalise on its recent success.
Looking ahead, our focus is on building new Tradiecore functionality and adding new services that we expect will drive further engagement and profitable growth.
FY26 is set to be a year of momentum and innovation as we aim to activate engagement of
tradies on the platform and unlock the next phase of growth across our marketplaces in
Australia and New Zealand.
