Puls Biznesu, a prestigious Polish daily, last week published its ranking of the 346 corporations listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange according to their growth prospects. Among the TOP 6 companies named as “pearls” by the Exchange, the Slovak IT Company Asseco Slovakia took 4th place

The Pentor research agency asked 180 brokers, financial analysts and investment advisors to evaluate the potential further growth of corporations listed (issuing shares) on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Asseco Slovakia, a systems integrator and supplier of IT solutions placed fourth, behind TV station TVN, shoe manufacturer Protektor and financial portal Bankier.pl. Jozef Klein, Asseco Slovakia’s chief executive officer, was quoted as saying such a position reflected an appreciation of the company’s current performance and an expression of trust by analysts and investors in Asseco Slovakia’s future growth. He further mentioned that this award was the best calling card for Slovak corporations representing themselves abroad.

Asseco Slovakia is the first and so far only Slovak corporation to be directly listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. The first 306 thousand shares were issued in October 2006, priced at 250 Zloty/share. On the first day of trading, investors were quoting the stock at a multiple of eight, with the price per share climbing to 300 zloty. The share price is currently moving around 390 Zloty. Asseco Slovakia’s market capitalization has risen more than 80% year-to-year, representing an increase in the company’s capitalization by almost 3 billion SKK. 

Asseco Slovakia’s prospects have also been confirmed with an investment by a reputable corporation, ING Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych S.A., which with 158,903 shares on 5 February had more than a 10% stake in Asseco Slovakia.