That said, if we were to indulge ourselves, the case of SAP could well be just such a hill. On several occasions in the past, not entirely convinced by the results of the German group's highly ambitious external growth strategy, we have expressed reservations about its performance, its value creation and, by extension, its valuation.

Despite our warnings, it has to be said that the share price has doubled over the past eighteen months. So, in the light of yesterday's annual results, it's time for a fresh look at the situation, and for a mea culpa if circumstances so dictate.

Which seems to be an option at first sight: the press release is triumphant, with promises of further "acceleration" in 2025 and double-digit growth rates everywhere... Well, everywhere except in terms of profits, which are falling rather sharply.

Operating profit, for a start, is down 20% on an IFRS basis. On an adjusted non-IFRS basis, it is up by 25%; but to do this, it conveniently ignores no less than EUR3.5 billion (sic) of supposedly "exceptional" charges.

It's a bit of a big pill to swallow, all the more so as there's a similar contraction in what is normally the judge of peace, namely cash profit, or free cash flow: it's down by a fifth - or one billion euros - in 2024 compared with the previous year. This leaves us dubious, and hardly refutes our initial apprehensions.

Naturally, SAP is promising a marked improvement in free cash flow next year, which should more than double over the next twelve months. If we take this promise at face value, it brings our current valuation to thirty-eight times the profit expected in twelve months' time.

Even if he's not going to die on that hill, MarketScreener still finds this a very high price to pay - and therefore considers the situation excessively risky.