YB new stock pitches (Mon, Feb 9)

Organto Foods Inc. (OGO.V), a European organic food distributor, secured eight new retail customers (seven large-format retailers) expanding into Switzerland, Ukraine, and Spain, plus six new growing partners to support higher throughput and supply redundancy. The company is evaluating additional organic product categories beyond bananas to capture more market share in the €54.7B European organic food retail market, projected to reach €132B by 2033. Following this operational update, the analyst increased 2026E revenue estimates from $95.0M to $113.8M (+89% YoY growth) on top of 190% expected growth in 2025E, and raised the target price to $1.25 from $1.00 while maintaining a BUY rating. The stock has rallied 47% over six months (10x off lows) following a 21-month restructuring that cleaned up the balance sheet, converted debt to equity, and sold underperforming subsidiaries. Key catalysts include ongoing new customers/products/suppliers, quarterly results, growth initiatives beyond the European platform, and establishing operational financing facilities. Expected Q4 2025 financials include $14.2M revenue (+120% YoY), 9% gross margins, and $0.2M EBITDA versus ($1.2M) prior year, with full-year 2025 projecting $60.1M revenue (+190% YoY) and ($0.8M) EBITDA versus ($2.2M) in 2024. OGO trades at 2.0x 2026E sales versus peers at 3.4x despite the high growth profile, led by experienced management including CEO Steve Bromley with 15 years at SunOpta, targeting growth in the global organic foods market expected to grow at 11% CAGR.

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U.C.A. Aktiengesellschaft (UCA.DE) owns 57.5% of Pflegia, Germany's dominant nursing recruitment platform that has revolutionized hiring through 'reverse recruiting' where employers apply directly to nurses rather than the traditional model. Pflegia has grown to over 815,000 registered nurses (nearly 50% of Germany's 1.7-1.8 million nurses), up from 500,000 in August 2025, representing a 38% increase in just 6 months, with over 40,000 listed jobs from more than 8,000 employers. The company expanded this successful model to skilled trades in 2024 through Werkia, targeting critical trades like electronics and HVAC by recruiting craftsmen via social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram. U.C.A. AG generated over €3 million in annual net profit in 2024 and increased its dividend to €4.50 per share from the previous €3.00. The stock currently trades at €65 with a calculated fair P/E ratio of 20.4, and the analyst has set a price target of €220 representing a 239% upside over 3 years, positioning it as a TOP 25 stock based on value/momentum investing criteria. Key risks include the microcap nature with low liquidity requiring limit orders, while catalysts include Germany's nursing shortage projected to reach 690,000 missing workers by 2049 and Pflegia's goal to become Europe's leading nursing recruitment platform.

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VEND Marketplaces (VEND.OL), a Nordic classifieds company, delivered strong Q4 results with NOK 1,510m revenue (flat year-over-year), NOK 490m EBITDA representing a 34% margin that beat consensus by 13.5% driven by disciplined cost management (OPEX ~6% below consensus) and continued monetization efforts. The investor doubled their position, making it one of their largest holdings, despite industry-wide negative sentiment from AI-related concerns and read-across from Rightmove's commentary. ARPA growth remained strong with double-digit growth across the portfolio as the company exercises pricing power cautiously, though volumes have been subdued due to weaker macro conditions. The bottom line was impacted by a NOK 2,824m non-cash write-down of Adevinta driven by lower peer valuation multiples rather than operational deterioration, with management noting improved operational performance within Adevinta. The company maintains a robust balance sheet with NOK 210m net cash, enabling a new NOK 2bn buyback program and proposed dividend increase to NOK 2.5/share (from NOK 2.25/share last year), totaling NOK 7.9bn in shareholder returns during FY'25. The investor views this as a ~20% 4-year IRR opportunity on conservative estimates, with the Adevinta stake (for which exit dialogues are ongoing for the largest assets) accounting for over 50% of the current share price.

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