Hipages Group's Cash Pile Now Covers Nearly Half Its Market Value

A broad SaaS sell-off and an earnings miss hit the online tradie marketplace hard, but strong cash generation and a new buyback have fund managers arguing it's oversold.

31 Aug 2026 · 2 min read

Hipages Group fell 43 to 44 percent in a single quarter despite strong free cash flow growth and continued operational execution, caught in a broader micro-cap technology sell-off alongside a first-half earnings miss, even as fund managers argue the online tradie marketplace's cash generation and now-active buyback make it deeply undervalued.

Genuine operating leverage builds toward long-term targets

Forager Funds said Hipages made progress toward its long-term profitability targets in its FY25 results, with nearly half of incremental revenue falling through to free cash flow, showing strong operating leverage, with long-term targets suggesting that figure can continue running above 40 percent, vastly improving cash generation over time.

A broad tech sell-off, compounded by an earnings miss

Investors Mutual Limited said the stock fell 43 percent despite strong free cash flow growth and continued strong operational execution, falling victim to the broader sell-off in micro-cap technology stocks, and remains highly confident in the business's long-term trajectory. Ellerston Capital said the stock fell 44 percent for the quarter for two reasons: the broader sell-off in SaaS stocks worldwide, and a miss in first-half earnings, though the company's market cap is now backed by almost 40 percent in cash and it continues generating positive cash flow.

The company's market cap is now backed by almost 40% in cash and is generating positive cash flow.

— Ellerston Capital, Monthly Report, March 2026

Continued pressure, but a buyback signals confidence

Forager Funds described Hipages as a much smaller business than others in its portfolio, with about a $100 million market cap, effectively a platform where tradies come to seek jobs, allowing customers to post a job, whether gardening, plumbing or otherwise, and receive bids from multiple tradies, calling it a very good platform for job matching. Ellerston Capital said the stock gave up a large amount of the prior month's gains, falling 8 percent, continuing to face the same issues as other SaaS stocks in the Australian market, but now at a significantly lower valuation and with a buyback in place.

The company continues to face the same issues as other SaaS stocks in the Australian market but at a significantly lower valuation and a buyback now in place.

— Ellerston Capital, Monthly Report, May 2026

What fund managers say they are watching next is whether the sell-off, tied to broader SaaS and micro-cap tech weakness rather than company-specific issues, reverses as sentiment stabilises, continued delivery of the above-40-percent incremental-revenue-to-free-cash-flow target, execution of the newly active buyback given the near-40-percent cash backing, and resolution of the first-half earnings miss that compounded the broader sector weakness.