Macro and portfolio briefing

Aurelia Capital quarterly review for the Board. Soft landing, a sound book, and a clear deployment agenda for the next two quarters.

15-minute slot · Q1 2026 · Confidential

02 Answer first
Executive summary

Hold the book and deploy selectively; consumer is the only material drag

+6.2%
Aggregate EBITDA, year over year
2
Portfolio companies below plan (consumer)
€480M
Dry powder ready to deploy
2
Exits planned within 12 months
  • 01

    Eurozone soft landing holds: GDP +0.9% y/y, inflation 2.3%, ECB at 1.75%.

  • 02

    Industrials (34%) and software (28%) fund performance; consumer (22%) is the pressure seat.

  • 03

    Next two quarters: fortify the two underperformers, stage two exits, deploy dry powder against a high bar.

02 / 08
03 Macro

Soft landing holds: growth near 1%, inflation near target

+0.9%
Eurozone GDP growth, year over year. Activity stable, not accelerating.
2.3%
Headline inflation. Close enough to target to keep policy on hold near term.
1.75%
ECB policy rate. Financing costs cut, refinancing windows reopening for sponsors.
1.14
EUR/USD. A firmer euro trims import cost risk and supports euro-denominated cash flows.

Source: Aurelia Capital macro desk, latest print preliminary for eurozone series.

03 / 08
04 Sectors

Industrials and software fund the book; consumer needs defence

Industrials · 34%

Constructive

Capex and supply-chain normalisation support order books. Overweight stance still justified.

Software · 28%

Supportive

Lower rates aid ARR multiples. Prefer recurring revenue; avoid pure usage bets.

Consumer · 22%

Defensive

Volume soft, pricing power uneven. Two names already below plan. No add capital until recovery path clear.

Healthcare · 16%

Stable

Defensive cash flows. Hold; tolerate modest entry multiples for quality assets.

Sector exposure of capital
Industrials · 34% Software · 28% Consumer · 22% Healthcare · 16%

Source: Aurelia Capital portfolio weights at quarter close.

04 / 08
05 Portfolio

Aggregate EBITDA is +6.2%; two consumer names lag

CompanySectorvs planEBITDA
Northline SystemsSoftwareOn+11%
Atlas ComponentsIndustrialsOn+9%
Helios MedTechHealthcareOn+8%
Forge PrecisionIndustrialsOn+7%
Vertex CloudSoftwareOn+7%
Meridian RetailConsumerBelow−4%
Lumen GoodsConsumerBelow−6%

Source: Portfolio ops weekly; remaining four companies on or above plan (not shown).

Heat reading

Nine of eleven companies track plan. Aggregate remains +6.2% because industrials and software more than cover the consumer shortfall.

Meridian Retail

−4% vs plan

Traffic soft in mid-tier formats. Margin plan missed on promo intensity.

Lumen Goods

−6% vs plan

Category destocking longer than budgeted. Fixed-cost recovery delayed one quarter.

05 / 08
06 Watch list

Four names set the next twelve months of work

Exit · Industrials

Atlas Components

On plan, buyer interest confirmed. Target process launch within two quarters. Hold sales readiness workstream.

Exit · Software

Vertex Cloud

Recurring the story; net retention supports a growth multiple. Dual-track strategic and sponsor process.

Remediate · Consumer

Meridian Retail

90-day cost and promo plan under review. Board gate before any follow-on capital.

Remediate · Consumer

Lumen Goods

Working-capital release and SKU rationalisation in flight. Monthly ops cadence with IC chair.

Cadence

Watch list is closed to four. Additions require Investment Committee notice. Dry powder is not reserved for these names until remediation signs clear.

06 / 08
07 Positioning

Next two quarters: fortify, stage exits, deploy with a high bar

Q now

Hold industrials overweight

No trim. Rehearse Atlas Components for process launch. Prefer buy-and-build bolt-ons under existing platforms.

Q now

Fortify software quality

Stage Vertex Cloud dual-track exit. New names only with 90%+ recurring share and net retention above 110%.

Priority

Cut consumer risk

Freeze add-ons to Meridian and Lumen until plan lock. Target 90-day recovery pack, then reassess. No new consumer platform before then.

Q+1 / Q+2

Deploy €480M selectively

Ring-fence dry powder for industrials and software primary and for two reserved bolt-ons. Require IC sign-off above €75M ticket size.

07 / 08
08 Decision
Board ask

Endorse the remediation gate and dry-powder rules today

Ask 1

Remediation gate

Approve 90-day plans for Meridian and Lumen; no follow-on capital without IC clearance.

Ask 2

Exit readiness

Authorise process launch prep on Atlas Components and Vertex Cloud this quarter.

Ask 3

Deployment rules

Reserve €480M dry powder for industrials and software; tickets above €75M require full IC.

First concrete step

Ops and deal teams circulate the two 90-day consumer recovery packs and the exit prep calendars within ten business days. Owner: CIO office.

08 / 08
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