PR firm PPS snapped up

PPS Group, the PR company that specialises in handling challenging briefs, has been acquired for £6.1m.

It has been bought by London-based Porta Communications using a mixture of cash, shares and loan notes.

PPS employs 45 people in Manchester, London, Bristol, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Cardiff. It will operate as Newgate PPS and become Porta’s public affairs arm.

In recent years PPS has represented shale gas firm Cuadrilla and worked with the Peel Group on its proposals for energy from waste power plants.

In the year to April 30, PPS’s fee income was £4,6m with pre-tax profits of £706,277. It has net assets of £1.6m and £1.6m in the bank.

Porta chief executive David Wright, said: “This acquisition is in line with Porta’s strategy of building critical mass across the marketing communications mix. PPS is a very successful, professionally run company that will bring a new area of expertise to the group and is complementary to our existing specialist public affairs offering.”