Etteplan To Acquire Semcon to Gain Scale Etteplan, the ER&D services vendor headquartered in Espoo, Finland,
Bertrandt (Modestly) Shifts its Portfolio to Digital with Philotech
Bertrandt announced its first acquisition in years: Philotech will help the firm to (modestly) shift its portfolio. The company had an estimated EUR40m in revenues and is headquartered in Taufkirchenn, close to Munich, Germany.
Modis Comes Into the Light with Akka
Modis came into the light two weeks ago when Adecco announced the acquisition of Akka. Modis is a decently large IT services firm with 2020 revenues of EUR 2,179m. It is little-profitable with an adjusted EBITA margin of 5.7% (2019: 6.3%). Like everyone, the company faced headwinds in 2020, with revenues down 9% in 2020 (2019: -3%).
When Will Sweco Make A Significant Acquisition?
It has been five years since Sweco made its last significant acquisition. In 2015, the company took over Grontmij, which brought 6,000 employees and revenues of EUR 659m.
Thermo Fisher Makes A Massive Acquisition with PPD
Become a ERD Services premium reader to access all of your content, by contacting us at dominique@ERDservices.org.
Hitachi Buys GlobalLogic for USD 9.6bn. A Shock to the ER&D industry
The Hitachi USD 9.6bn acquisition of GlobalLogic was a shock to the engineering and R&D service industry. Hitachi values GlobalLogic 37.4x its calendar 2021 adjusted EBITDA. The multiple is very high, even for a firm of the quality of GlobalLogic. Only three years ago, Apax sold its 48% stake in GlobalLogic to Switzerland-based Partners Group. At the time, the transaction valued GlobalLogic USD 2bn. Back then, the USD 2bn valuation seemed in line with the Aricent and Luxoft respective acquisitions by Altran and DXC.
Icon Acquires PRA to Double its Size
Icon made a step change in the clinical trials CRO market with its USD 12bn planned PRA Health Sciences acquisition. The purpose of the transaction is scale. With PRA Health Services, Icon will double its size.
Charles River Gains Large Molecules Expertise, Targeting Biotechs
Charles River Labs (CRL) will gain further expertise for biotechs. The company is to acquire San Francisco-based Distributed Bio, a large molecules specialist firm focusing on antibody discovery. Distributed Bio will become part of CRL’s core R&D business, Discovery & Safety Assessment.
UPDATED: Atos Approaches DXC in a USD 10bn Transaction
Following a Reuters news release, European IT services vendor Atos confirmed it had submitted to the Board of DXC an unsolicited non-binding offer to acquire the firm. The offer is at a preliminary stage. Reuters estimated Atos’ offer to USD 10bn.
Jacobs Spends USD 1.8bn on PA Consulting to Keep It Independent
Jacobs surprised us with its intention to acquire a 65% stake in PA Consulting for USD 1.8bn (enterprise value of the stake). For those of us that have been in the industry, we know that consulting acquisitions can be risky. Think of EDS and AT Kearney, Capgemini and Ernst & Young Consulting, or IBM and PwC Consulting.
Sweco’s Latest Acquisition Raises Many Questions
Sweco’s latest acquisition raises many questions. The company acquired a Norwegian architect firm, TAG Arkitekter (TAG).
Accenture X Acquires A SCM SAP Specialist
Accenture made another acquisition for its Industry X unit. Salt Solutions is based in Würzburg, 80 miles away from Frankfurt, in Germany. It, also, has offices in Stuttgart, Dresden, and Munich. Salt is SAP-centric with a specialization in SCM and also capabilities around production systems, all around SAP.
Charles River Acquires Cellero for its HemaCare Business
In August, CRL acquired a small firm, Cellero, headquartered close to Boston for USD 38m. Cellero brought a geography presence to HEMA (which is based in California).
AFRY: One Year After the Merger, Still Struggling on Organic Growth
One year after its merger with Pöyry, AFRY is still struggling. At the time of the Pöyry acquisition, AFRY, the ÅF, wanted to reignite organic growth and improve its profitability. The result is mixed.
Accenture Industry X.0 Makes Another Acquisition in Digital Manufacturing
Accenture made another acquisition for its Industry X.0 unit. The newly acquired firm is Callisto Integration, an industrial IT specialist that is headquartered in Oakville, Ontario.
Capgemini Finally Becomes the Number Engineering and R&D Sevices Vendor
The Stock Market meltdown resulted in an unexpected outcome: Capgemini secured 98.2% of the shares of Altran, with investors rushing to get EUR 14.5 per Altran share. Capgemini will now launch a squeeze-out procedure.
Akka Launches a Mandatory Offer for Data Respons
Akka has launched a mandatory offer for Data Respons (DR) that will provide shareholders the opportunity to sell their DR shares. The company has been active on the stock markets since the end of its tender offer on February 13, raising its stake from 72.9% to 78.1%. Akka is hoping to reach 95% of shares and launch a squeeze-out offer later one.
Akka Secures 64% of Data Respons’ Stock
After its unexpected revenue growth slowdown in Q4, Akka suffered from a disappointing result: it secured only 64% of the shares of Data Repons. Akka has received regulatory clearance from the German cartel office authority, so now has control over Data Response.
Sweco Acquires An Architecture Bureau in Belgium
Become a ERD Services premium reader to access all of your content, by contacting us at dominique@ERDservices.org.
Capgemini Increases Its Tender Offer for Altran by 3.6%
Capgemini modestly increased its tender offer for Altran by 3.6%, from €14.0 to €14.5 per share.
Akka Acquires Data Respons and Makes its Most Expensive Acquisition Ever
In a November blog, we had mentioned that Akka had issued €175m in convertible bonds. Akka
Belcan Acquires in Software Engineering
Belcan strengthened its software engineering capabilities with the acquisition of Base2 Solutions, a firm headquartered in Bellevue, WA and with an office in California. Base2 has a similar client base to Belcan, with major clients including Boeing, Thales, and L3Harris in aerospace and defense.
Akka Raises EUR 175m in Convertible Bonds. But Why?
We don’t usually comment on the financial performance of ER&D service vendors beyond their financials. But this time, this is a little bit different: Akka Technologies raised yesterday EUR 175m in convertible bonds, a significant amount for Akka, which has a market cap of EUR ~EUR 1.2bn.
Capgemini’s Acquisition of Altran Delayed by Elliott by Up to Five Months
Capgemini’s acquisition of Altran will be delayed by up to six months. Edge Fund Elliott has, through intermediaries, brought, the case to court. The initial ruling on December 4 will decide if the acquisition will be suspended. A final ruling will occur by end of the March at the latest.
Thoughts About HCL Tech’s Performance in Q2 FY20
HCL Tech’s ERS accelerated its yoy growth in Q2 FY20 to +15.0% at CC, from +13.3%. Its EBIT margin also increased from 16.0% in Q1 to 21.4% in Q2. The financial improvement results from mostly a catch-up effect: ERS recognized revenues in Q2 that it could not in Q1.