Since my top best buy Poulaillon was taken private at a premium two months ago, it cannot be in the best buys anymore for this category.
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While I don’t look for new investments actively in Europe, I keep an eye on my watchlist and portfolio investments. I have included the 1x P/E serial acquirer: high risk high reward.
6-Ambra SA-Poland
Ambra is the leading wine and sparkling wines companies in Poland. It is a company I rebought in 2026. After lackluster performance, it showed good growth in 2025 December half earnings. December is the most important period for this company.
Ambra produces wines, sparkling wines, liquor, non alcoholic beverages. What I like about this company is that it is acquiring small companies, and growing the business organically with a strong marketing team constantly launching products.
The last quarter earnings were not great, but H1 2025 showed good recovery.
Ambra is going to benefit from productivity and savings capex done in the past two years. The rise in oil price is nevertheless temporarily impacting earnings costs.
Ambra trades at 4.5 times operating cash flow, and the investments are generally growth investments, towards non alcoholic and soft drinks investments.
A cheap boring cash machine at 8 times earnings with a 6% dividend.
5-Kontron AG-Austria
Kontron is an Internet of things company. It develops products (embedded computers and parts). It trades at 13.8 times earnings, but a more accurate 8 times EV/EBITDA, because earnings are affected by one offs, and less than 9 times operating cash flows.
This is a project related company with some recurring revenue.
In Q1, revenue and EBITDA were flat, up 1.7% year on year. (We had 7.7% of revenue divested also).
What is interesting about Kontron is that it is at the beginning of a bell curve of internet of things equipment:
Computers and devices working in autonomy and communicating safely over the internet. They require hardware, software and protocols. Kontron is also present in smart transportation, defense and green energy.
The green energy segment is seeing sales drop but they will likely recover over the next few years.
Divestments are hiding the picture of long term growth trend: “EUR 579 million of low margin biz divested/discontinued over last 3 years.” This represent more than 30% of the annual revenue.
Kontron finds the company undervalued and launched a buy back program in 2026. With low leverage, it can continue with acquisitions expected in the future.
https://cms.kontron.com/kontron/ir/reports/ec-2025_ir_presentation.pdf
4-SDI PLC- UK
A left for dead serial acquirer in scientific instruments and scientific/high tech manufacturing businesses at 11 times earnings.
It grew very fast and over earned during covid as it was supplying some cameras used covid testing inside of PCR instruments. This caused euphoria, and later despair as sales of came back down.
After that, management changed for a new CEO. It was feared that the business model was dead, but SDI resumed with value enhancing acquisitions, such as PRP Optoelectronics
Revenues and profits are trending positive again.
It is highly surprising that in this AI driven market, 10 times profit companies like SDI growing 5, 10 or even 15% interest no one.
The next ones are similar.