Strix – ready to bubble again but conditions remain difficult, shares 47.75p, analyst ‘fair value’ 89p

Mark Watson-Mitchell – 30.01.2026

It was on Friday 19^th December last year, that the Strix Group (LON:KETL) announced the proposed disposal of its Billi business for £110.0m on a cash-free, debt-free basis, representing a significant return on its initial £38.0m investment.

That strategic move is aimed at addressing the macroeconomic headwinds impacting the Controls division and strengthen the £108m-capitalised group's financial position, with an estimated net debt of £68m at completion.

The group stated that the proceeds will be used to repay existing debt, fund a £10.0m share buyback programme, and to enable investing in strategic growth initiatives for the core Controls and Consumer Goods divisions.

The Billi business is expected to have generated £47.0m in revenue and £10.0m in adjusted EBITDA for the year to end-December 2025.

However, the actual disposal proceeds were some £5m short of expectation, coming in at around £105m, but the group is planning to use the proceeds, leaving it with net cash of £35m.

The Business

Based in the Isle of Man, the Strix Group is a global leader in the design, manufacture and supply of kettle controls, heating and temperature controls, steam management and water filtration technologies.

It is backed by extensive and patented IP and continues to innovate within the small domestic appliance and water filtration segments, with a focus on safety, design and sustainability.

The group has a majority share of its largest market, kettle controls and leading positions within the faster-growing

personal, domestic and corporate water filtration markets. 

Management Comment

Upon announcing the disposal in December, CEO Mark Bartlett stated that:

"The disposal of Billi represents a transformational milestone for Strix and a clear demonstration of our disciplined approach to capital allocation and value creation.

Over the three years that Billi has been part of the Group, we have successfully enhanced its operational performance and strategic positioning, delivering an absolute return of c.3x on the original investment made in 2022.

The proceeds from the disposal will significantly strengthen Strix's balance sheet, enabling the Company to eliminate its net debt and materially improve financial flexibility.

This represents a pivotal step in reinforcing the long-term resilience and financial health of the Group, allowing us to invest with confidence in our core business and support future growth initiatives.

Looking ahead, our focus remains firmly on sustaining our market-leading position across heating, safety and filtration technologies, while continuing to deliver the highest standards of service to our customers.

Above all, Strix remains focused on creating sustainable, long-term value for shareholders, which sits at the very heart of our strategy."

Challenging Conditions

The group today stated that market conditions remain challenging, the early indications of post-tariff improvement in the Controls division experienced in Q4 have continued to build.

As a result of the recent trading volatility however, the final quarter has become a more important trading period than has historically been the case.

The Board will provide a further trading update in due course.

The Equity

There are some 229.86m shares in issue.

The larger holders include Victor Vallejo (9.99%), Kambiz Nourbakhsh (6.52%), Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management (5.98%), Jupiter Asset Management (5.47%), Hargreaves Lansdown Asset Management (3.69%), Pieter Bastiaan Foundation (3.62%), DUMAC (3.09%), Octopus Investments (2.99%), Singular Asset Management (2.84%) and Mark Bartlett, CEO (1.19%).

Broker Views

Analysts Andy Hanson and Charlie Cullen, at Zeus Capital, consider that post the disposal of Billi, the group will remain a market leading business, strongly positioned in the event of a recovery in Controls markets, which they believe should re-rate.

For the 15-month period to end-March 2026, they estimate group revenues will be £165.5m against £144.0m for the year to end-December 2024, with adjusted pre-tax profits coming in at £14.9m) (£18.5m), reducing earnings per share to 5.4p (6.7p).

The 2027 year to end-March could show £146.9m sales, with £15.7m profits and 5.7p in earnings.

Looking further ahead into 2028 the analysts look for £150.9m revenues, with £17.4m profits and 6.3p earnings.

Over at Equity Development its two analysts, David O’Brien and Hannah Crowe, have a ‘fair value’ of 89p on the group’s shares.

They consider that:

“In view of the indebtedness of Strix currently, moving the Group to a net cash position is a primary benefit of the deal.

While growth has slowed across the retained divisions in recent years, investment that was previously directed towards Billi can now be potentially utilised elsewhere across the Controls and Consumer Goods divisions.

Stalled growth was down to a combination of geopolitical (sanctions), macroeconomic, tariff-related and input cost issues in recent years, with Consumer Goods also suffering from rising development and launch costs of new products.”

For the current year, they see £163.0m sales, £14.7m profits and 5.4p of earnings per share.

My View

In the last year, this group’s shares have been down to a 32.50p Low and up to 53.30p at their High.

They are now 47.25p.

I now set a new Target Price of 58p on the shares.

(Profile 30.01.26 @ 47.25p set a Target Price of 58p)