Mergers and Acquisitions in July 2021
According to Business Intelligence Bureau Van Dijk, July proved to be another busy trading period with 175 transaction recorded for the month. Overseas acquirers were also active during this time with a recording of 67 deals. With an active start to H2 of 2021, the remainder of the year if off to a promising start.
The largest transaction of the month was the £449 million acquisition of Zennor Petroleum Ltd by NEO Energy Upstream UK Ltd. The completion further solidifies NEO’s position among the largest oil and gas producers in the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) and delivers an asset portfolio with significant scope for organic growth. Russ Alton, the chief executive office of NEO Energy, said in a company statement, “We are delighted to announce the completion of this transaction and to welcome the Zennor team to NEO. Out combined teams are very excited about the opportunities this portfolio of assets brings to NEO, as we further expand our operated position providing us with greater control and flexibility to maximise value.”
Another significant deal recorded was the £340 million acquisition of Pulsant Ltd by Antin Infrastructure Partners SAS. Pulsant owns and operates a portfolio of 10 data centres across seven cities in the UK. It provides essential data centre and cloud infrastructure, including colocation, private cloud, and network connectivity to a loyal base of over 1,000 private enterprise and public sector consumers. Rob Coupland, Chief Executive Officer at Pulsant, commented, “We thank Oak Hill Capital and Scottish Equity Partners for their support to date. In partnership with Antin, we now look forward to delivering on considerable potential we see over the coming years, driven by our cloud and edge capabilities, our regional presence and our ability to deliver customised solutions.”
Other higher value deals for this month include the acquisition of Cargotec OYj’s UK-based Navis business by Accel-KKR Company LLC for £325 million; Flexion Energy Holdings UK Ltd by ion Ventures Holdings Ltd for £150 million; Globalworth Real Estate Investments Ltd by Zakiono Enterprises Ltd for £122 million; Maven Capital Partners UK LLP by Mattioli Woods plc for £120 million; Immunodiagnostic Systems Holdings plc by PerkinElmer (UK) Holdings Ltd for £110 million; Newport Water Fab Ltd by Nexperia BV for £63 million; and TM group (UK) Ltd by Dye & Durham (UK) Ltd for £88 million.
Magna Colours Ltd was acquired by Avient Corporation for £34.7 million. Founded in 1978, Magna provides high-performance inks with sustainability benefits to major brands and screen printers. Robert Patterson, Avient Corporation Chairman President and CEO commented, “Magna represents an important investment in sustainable solutions, as brand owners seek alternatives to legacy technologies. We are thrilled to have Magna join Avient. We expect our collective inks portfolio will grow substantially as the threat of Covid subsides, people can safely attend sporting and other live events in person, and travel increases.”
Some of the overseas deals that took place during this reporting period include the acquisition of Mologic Ltd by Private Investors; SSE Contracting Ltd by Aurelius Equity Opportunities SE & Co. KGaA; Web Shield Ltd by ZignSec AB; Wensleydale Dairy Products Ltd’s business activities by Saputo Inc.; Clearcomm Group Ltd by Sterlite Technologies Ltd; Thermal Transfer Solutions Ltd by GT Holdings (HK) Ltd; Carlo Holdings Ltd by Hamilton Investments Pte Ltd; CDI Holdings (Guernsey) Ltd by Manas Resources Ltd; and Daisybeck Studios Ltd by Entertainment One Ltd.
The professional and financial services sectors proved to be particularly active this month with a number of deals taking place. Some of these acquisitions include Hettle Andrews & Associates Ltd by AssuredPartners Inc.; Baylor Klein Ltd by Houlihan Lokey Inc.; Rock Insurance Services Ltd by TICOPR Ltd; and Holbein Partners LLP by Tiedemann Constantia AG.
In summary, July’s M&A activity has taken place in a number of different sectors, with significant deals contributing to this month’s overall figure. With active public trade buyers as well as private equity investors, the UK continues to appeal to acquirers from both the UK and overseas.
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