Avigilon: Cantech Letter’s 2012 TSX Tech Stock of the Year

Avigilon is the 2012 Cantech Letter TSX Tech Stock of the Year.

In Canada these days, the tech IPO is a rare bird. Perhaps, however, the notable success of Avigilon will help lure some of our many exceptional private techs to the public markets. Avigilon IPO’d last November at $4.50 and quickly began dispelling any notion that its success as a private company wouldn’t continue under the microscope of public ownership. The company has continue to deliver high double-digit growth on the way to what management believes will be a half-billion dollar company by 2016.

Founded in 2004, Avigilon designs and sells next-generation surveillance systems. Management says the surveillance market is fragmented because to date there has been no integrated supplier of equipment, meaning the majority of end users do not have high definition systems due to compatibility issues and a lack of industry standards. Avigilon allows clients operating mission critical environments such as prisons and casinos to have install a high def system that is reliable as analog, and has the added benefit of providing video resolution that is standing up in courtrooms, which reduces legal costs. Avigilon has sold over 210,000 camera and software licenses that have been installed at more than 17,000 customer sites.

Avigilon was chosen by a panel of equity analysts and the readers of Cantech Letter.

Industrial Alliance analyst Steve Li says he picked Avigilon for the award because of the combination of “excellent financial results and exceptional stock performance”. Byron capital’s Tom Astle summed up the feeling of many when he cast his vote for Avigilon: “We need more of these!” said Astle.