Benchmark Report
Sorren-branded, client-ready reporting generated from the selected peer cohort.
Ashland Software
Ashland, OR · NAICS 541511 Custom Computer Programming Services
Executive Summary
Ashland Software generated $17,068,000 of revenue in 2026 with 57 employees, producing an EBITDA margin of 31.5% against a peer median of 19.0%. Compared with 160 similar businesses, performance is strongest in profitability and warrants examination in growth. Total benchmark variance across all categories is $369K.
Company Snapshot
Peer Group Definition
Comparison sample size 160; NAICS 541511; revenue range $8.50M–$27.30M; geographic filter OR. Data availability for this client: 65% coverage across tax return, financial statements, payroll and employee records.
Financial Performance
| Line item (% revenue) | Company | Peer median | Top 25% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 11.4% | 11.5% | 10.4% |
| Gross Profit | 88.6% | 88.5% | 89.6% |
| Payroll | 37.0% | 46.7% | 42.5% |
| Benefits | 5.3% | 7.5% | 6.6% |
| Occupancy | 2.5% | 2.9% | 2.5% |
| Marketing | 3.5% | 4.4% | 4.8% |
| Insurance | 0.7% | 0.8% | 0.7% |
| Professional Fees | 1.6% | 1.9% | 1.6% |
| Administrative & Other | 5.5% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
| EBITDA | 31.5% | 19.0% | 23.7% |
| Depreciation | 1.3% | 1.4% | 1.3% |
| Interest | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% |
| Net Income | 24.3% | 13.6% | 17.2% |
Profitability and Operational Efficiency
Balance Sheet
Tax Overview
Industry Trends
| Year | Revenue | Growth | Gross | EBITDA | Payroll % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | $9.32M | +0.3% | 88.1% | 32.9% | 40.4% |
| 2023 | $11.39M | +22.3% | 88.0% | 33.0% | 40.3% |
| 2024 | $13.44M | +18.0% | 88.2% | 32.6% | 40.8% |
| 2025 | $16.57M | +23.3% | 88.5% | 31.6% | 42.2% |
| 2026 | $17.07M | +3.0% | 88.6% | 31.5% | 42.3% |
Opportunities for Discussion
- Owner Compensation Structure. Owner compensation represents 8.2% of revenue compared with a 10.4% median for comparable entities. Should compensation strategy be reviewed with the tax team?Benchmark variance $369K
- Gross Margin Variance. Gross margin of 88.6% compares with a peer median of 88.5%. Where are direct costs and pricing diverging from comparable businesses?
- Payroll Efficiency. Total labor cost represents 42.3% of revenue against a peer median of 54.2%. Is the staffing model carrying capacity for growth, or absorbing margin?
- Operating Expense Load. Operating expenses run 57.0% of revenue versus a peer median of 70.3%. Which expense categories account for the difference?
- Revenue per Employee. Revenue per employee of $299K compares with a peer median of $275K. Is productivity constrained by capacity, mix, or pricing?
- Working Capital Position. Current ratio of 5.43 compares with an industry median of 5.12. How much liquidity headroom does the business need through its cycle?
- Leverage Profile. Debt to EBITDA of 0.19x compares with a peer median of 0.30x. Does the capital structure match the asset base and cash cycle?
Advisor Notes
Methodology
Sorren Benchmark aggregates anonymized financial, tax, payroll and operational data across 60,000 businesses. Peer statistics report count, mean, median, 10th, 25th, 75th and 90th percentiles and standard deviation. Comparisons use normalized ratios rather than raw dollars. Statistics are released only where a cohort contains at least 10 businesses, and individual peer companies are never displayed. Benchmark variance expresses the mathematical difference between this company and its peer median; it is not a projection of savings, nor tax or investment advice.