Deals round-up: Boom-time for DLA and Addleshaws; Seneca & more
DLA Piper’s Manchester corporate team is reporting a record number of deals in 2015 worth £3.09bn.
The team advised on several private equity, public markets and M&A transactions including; the secondary buy-out of biotech firm Synexus from Lyceum Capital, the sale of Western Mortgage Services as part of the outsourcing of The Co-operative Banks mortgage services, the acquisition of the Feel Good brand by Vimto owner Nichols, and the sale of Bolton disposable medical producsts manufacturer Vernacare to Palatine Private Equity.
Other highlights include advising Crewe-based Conviviality, the off licence and convenience store owners, on their £200m reverse takeover of national drinks wholesaler, Mathew Clark.
James Kerrigan, head of DLA Piper’s corporate team in Manchester said: “The team has continued to enjoy strong deal flow during 2015, in M&A, capital markets, private equity and refinancings, cementing our place in the market as one of the preeminent firms for both international and domestic corporate transactions. The pipeline for the early part of 2016 remains strong, with a number of transactions due to complete.”
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ADDLESHAW Goddard’s corporate team in Manchester advised on more than £5.75bn of M&A, private equity deals, and IPO deals during 2015.
The team’s highlights included; Norcros’s acquisition of bathroom supplier Croydex, Frenkel Topping’s acquisition of FC Fund Managers, LDC’s investment into Mini-Cam Holdings, Concept Life Sciences’ acquisitions of CXR Biosciences and Agenda Analytical Services, the sale of Bifold to Rotork, the disposal of CTC Aviation and PZ Cussons Plc buying out Glanbia plc’s stake in their Nutricima joint venture.
The team also acted for Peel on its joint venture with Legal and General at MediaCityUK and on the reduction of its shareholding in AIM-listed Pinewood Group, LivingBridge on its investment in Sykes Cottages, Bruntwood on its acquisition of the former BBC site on Oxford Road, cosmetics firm Grace Cole in relation to the buyout of one of the founder shareholders, Endless’s acquisition of Bright Blue Foods and ITC Luxury Travel Group’s acquisition of Western & Oriental Limited and Regent Holidays (UK).
Paul Medlicott, corporate partner at Addleshaw Goddard who leads the team’s private equity practice, said: “2015 was a great year for our corporate team in Manchester. Although there was a slight lull in activity prior to the General Election, the market picked up and has remained strong since.”
“With an uplift in the market and a real change of pace, we expect to see a number of significant deals coming to fruition this year. The size of these deals is not only positive for our pipeline but also for the local market.”
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PRIVATE equity exits remained buoyant in the North West in 2015, with 26 transactions worth in excess of £2bn, according to figures from the Centre for Management Buyout Research.
The research, sponsored by PE firm Equistone Partners Europe, reveals that the region ended the year with the highest number of exits in the North for the third consecutive year, second only to London.
There have been a number of high profile exits to the public markets in the North West this year, including the with Inflexion Private Equity-backed On The Beach joining the stock market with a £240m listing in September.
The region has also enjoyed a strong buyout market over the last 12 months, with 25 new buyouts completing in 2015, and the North West retaining its position as the most active market in the North in terms of volume.
Steve O’Hare, partner at Equistone in Manchester said: “The North West private equity market has demonstrated its resilience in 2015 with the appetite for buying and selling businesses remaining high over the last 12 months. Private equity houses have different potential exit routes to consider for their investments, with the public markets still providing one route as proven by Inflexion’s sale of On The Beach.”
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SENECA Partners’ Haydock-based corporate finance team has completed the sale of a £4.5m turnover precision engineering business in the West Midlands operating in the motor sports, aerospace and oil & gas sectors.
Tamworth-based Precision Technologies International was sold to a management team led by experienced Yorkshire-based entrepreneur Kevin Parkin.
The deal wass supported with funding from Finance Birmingham, Panoramic Growth Equity, management and Santander Invoice Finance, the deal sees current executives Colin Palin and Patrick Walker invest with Parkin, who becomes chief executive of PTI, to acquire the PTI business as part of a buy-in management buyout (BIMBO) transaction.
Seneca Partners provided corporate finance advice to the vendor, Castle Square.
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LANCASHIRE law firm Napthens and accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young advised on the sale of the Claybank Motors Skoda dealership to listed motor retail group Lookers.
Claybank’s owners, Gary McMahon and Andy Ambler, were advised by the team at Napthens solicitors led by Keith Melling with support from Roshni Valibhai, Anthony Fox and Gareth Birch.
Keith Melling, partner, said: “Gary and Andy have worked hard to see Claybank become a successful dealership, and this deal will mean the future of the business will now be secured under the stewardship of Lookers.”
Claybank was also advised by UHY Hacker Young accountants. Lookers was advised by Eversheds.
