Airbus to Buy Denmark’s Satair for $504 Mln to Add Services
Airbus SAS, the world’s largest maker of commercial aircraft, agreed to buy Danish aviation supplier Satair A/S for about $504 million in cash to add a maintenance and components company.
Airbus is offering 580 Danish kroner a share for the Kastrup, Denmark-based company, it said in a statement today. Satair closed at 470 kroner in Copenhagen yesterday. The company has 360 employees globally and predicted sales of $403 million in the fiscal year that ended last month. Satair jumped as much as 23 percent to 577 kroner in Copenhagen trading.
The purchase follows the takeover by Airbus parent European Aeronautic, Defence & Space Co. earlier this year of Canada’s Vector Aerospace Corp. (RNO) to expand in helicopter- and engine- maintenance. Satair is a “first step” toward bolstering services and component management, Chief Strategist Marwan Lahoud said in the statement today.
“Leveraging Airbus’ industry knowledge and relationship and Satair’s highly scalable operating model, Satair will continue developing its world-renowned brand name as a standalone company within Airbus,” Toulouse, France-based Airbus said. “Coordination with Airbus’ Material Management division will allow a full offering to the aviation industry.”
Airbus said it already has backing from Satair shareholders representing 16 percent of the stock. Management of the Danish company backs the transaction, according to the release.
The approach by Airbus comes four months after Satair said it received unsolicited, non-committal inquiries from financial investors about the possible takeover, an overture that it rejected because the timing wasn’t right. Satair sold its fastener distribution business for about $162 million in cash to B/E Aerospace last year.
Satair gained as much as 107 kroner to 577 kroner in Copenhagen. EADS, based in Paris and Munich, rose less than 0.1 percent to 24.54 euros in Paris.
EADS was advised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) and SEB AB, while Steen Associates, based in London, acted as financial adviser to Satair.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Benedikt Kammel at bkammel@bloomberg.net
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