Addtech: born from a spin-off

What is Addtech and why does it matter to a small holding company?

Addtech AB is a Stockholm-listed group of about 150 independent business-to-business companies with high technical content and leading positions in defined niches. It had 4,470 employees at the end of 2024/25. It owns for the long term and does not buy to resell. The annual report says it has acquired more than 200 companies since listing.

Its start was a spin-off. Bergman & Beving's own history page says the company was divided in 2001 into three independent listed companies: Addtech, Lagercrantz Group and Bergman & Beving. The Addtech 2001/02 annual report says the owners resolved at the August 2001 annual meeting to distribute Addtech to shareholders, and the B share was listed on the Stockholm O-list on September 3, 2001. The Swedish Tax Agency's share history says one Addtech share was distributed for each A or B share in Bergman & Beving, of the same class, and that the original cost is split 38% Bergman & Beving, 35% Addtech and 27% Lagercrantz.

That makes it the example of listing by distribution, not by offering. No new shares were sold to the public in the sources I opened.

What did it do, by the numbers?

• 2001/02 (April to March), the first year. Net sales were SEK 2,360 million (SEK 2,502 million the year before). Operating income was SEK 86 million (SEK 214 million) and profit after tax SEK 53 million (SEK 149 million). The margin was 3.6% (8.6%). There were about 50 subsidiaries in nine divisions and 1,155 average employees. Targets were growth of at least 15% a year in income after financial items and return on equity of at least 25% (annual report 2001/02).
• 2024/25. Net sales were SEK 21,796 million (SEK 20,019 million). Operating profit was SEK 2,757 million (SEK 2,426 million), a margin of 12.6%. Twelve acquisitions added about SEK 1.6 billion of annual sales and 325 employees. The dividend was SEK 3.20 per share, a 46% payout. The target is average earnings growth above 15% a year over a cycle, half organic and half from acquisitions (annual report 2024/25).
• 2025/26. Net sales were SEK 22,703 million (+4%) with 2% organic growth. Operating profit was SEK 3,085 million (+12%), a margin of 13.6%. Profit after tax was SEK 2,206 million and return on equity 29%. The report says nine acquisitions added SEK 1,595 million to revenue. The proposed dividend is SEK 3.60 per share (year-end report, May 20, 2026).

A second distribution followed in 2016, when Addtech holders received one AddLife share for every four Addtech shares of the same class, with a record date of March 11, 2016 (Swedish Tax Agency).

What worked, or what went wrong?

What worked

• Net sales grew from SEK 2,360 million in 2001/02 to SEK 22,703 million in 2025/26, about 9.6 times. The group changed shape in that time, including the 2016 AddLife distribution, so this is not a like-for-like ratio.
• The operating margin moved from 3.6% to 13.6%.
• The goals stayed consistent. The 2001/02 report set a 15% growth target and the 2024/25 report still sets one above 15%.
• The structure is decentralised, described as freedom with responsibility. Companies make their own decisions, and the centre supplies tools and training.
• The measure of working capital use is P/WC, which the annual report's administration report defines as EBITA in relation to working capital. It was 76% in 2024/25 (68% the year before) against a target above 45%.

What the figures also show

• The first year after the spin-off was weak: operating income fell from SEK 214 million to SEK 86 million and profit after tax from SEK 149 million to SEK 53 million. The part of the report I read gives no cause, so I offer none.
• In 2025/26 organic growth was 2%. Automation net sales were SEK 3,486 million against SEK 3,597 million the year before.
• Acquisitions were nine in 2025/26 against twelve in 2024/25.

What does and does not transfer to a small holding company?

What transfers

• A written growth rule with a split: half organic, half bought.
• A working-capital measure (profit over working capital) next to a profit measure.
• Perpetual ownership and local decisions.
• A payout policy: more than 30% of average profit after tax over a cycle.

What does not transfer

• The route. A spin-off needs a listed parent with many holders. Most small holding companies have neither.
• The starting point. Addtech began with about 50 subsidiaries and SEK 2.4 billion of sales.
• The record. More than 200 acquisitions since 2001 is a long run, not a plan for the first three years.

What do the numbers mean in a small-scale example?

Test the buying pace against the target. Half of a 15% growth target is 7.5% from acquisitions. In 2024/25 the group bought about SEK 1,600 million of annual sales against prior-year net sales of SEK 20,019 million, or 8.0%. In 2025/26 its acquisitions added SEK 1,595 million against SEK 21,796 million, or 7.3%. This compares sales to an earnings target, so it is only a rough check.

Assume a holding company with $10 million of sales wanted the same 7.5% pace. It would need to buy about $0.75 million of annual sales a year, which is one small business every year or two. This is an assumption for scale, not a forecast.

Where these numbers come from: 2001/02 figures, targets, the nine divisions, the Addtech AB formation and the September 3, 2001 listing are from the Addtech annual report 2001/02. The 2001 division into three companies is from Bergman & Beving's history page. The share exchange and the 2016 AddLife distribution are from the Swedish Tax Agency's share history. Companies, employees, the 200 acquisitions, targets, P/WC, the payout and 2024/25 acquisitions are from the annual report 2024/25, and 2024/25 net sales and profit are also in the year-end report 2024/25. 2025/26 figures are from the year-end report 2025/26. The ratios and the $10 million example are this site's arithmetic.

Related questions

How was Addtech listed?

By distribution. Bergman & Beving shareholders received Addtech shares, and the B share was listed on the Stockholm O-list on September 3, 2001. The sources I opened describe no public offering.

What does Addtech target for growth?

The 2024/25 annual report targets average earnings growth above 15% a year over a business cycle, half organic and half from acquisitions.

Is the 9.6 times sales growth a fair measure?

No, not on its own. The group has changed shape, including the 2016 AddLife distribution, and part of the growth was bought. Use it as a scale reference only. See dividend, buyback or acquire for how a holding company can split cash.

What comes next

For another Nordic serial acquirer, read Teqnion: a small Swedish serial acquirer.

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• Constellation Software: the template
• What hurdle rate should a serial acquirer use?
• Should a holdco pay a dividend, buy back stock or keep acquiring?

Meraki Dealmakers is a service of Meraki Partners, LLC, an advisory firm. It is not a broker-dealer, investment adviser, business broker, law firm or accounting firm. This article is general information, not legal, tax or investment advice.