Divestitures in 2018

3M has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the technology business of M*Modal for an enterprise value of $1.0 billion, expanding 3M Health Information Systems' capabilities in conversational AI and clinical documentation. The acquired business, based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, generates approximately $200 million in annual revenue and about 750 employees are expected to join 3M; M*Modal will retain its transcription, scribing and coding services business.

Tower Extrusions, Ltd. acquired substantially all assets of Ascend Custom Extrusions LLC from Highlander Partners, L.P., expanding Tower's extrusion capacity in Wylie, Texas. The transaction transfers Ascend's three extrusion presses and finishing capabilities to Tower, broadening its product offering and ability to serve building, transportation, and consumer durables markets.

US Ecology, Inc. acquired Ecoserv Industrial Disposal, LLC (the IDF), a non-hazardous industrial wastewater disposal business located in Winnie, Texas, from Ecoserv, LLC (majority owned by Lariat Partners). The transaction expands US Ecology’s Gulf Coast disposal capabilities, adding commercial caprock deep‑well injection capacity for difficult-to-treat Class 1 and 2 non-hazardous industrial waste streams.

Swiss consumer goods company The Hero Group has sold its U.S. decoration business, Signature Brands, to investors Traub Capital. The divestment allows Hero to focus on core categories such as baby food and healthy snacks; financial terms were not disclosed.

Malibu Boats, Inc. has acquired the assets of Pursuit Boats from S2 Yachts, Inc., adding a leader in the saltwater outboard fishing boat market to Malibu's portfolio. Angle Advisors acted as exclusive advisor to S2 on the divestiture; the Slikkers family will retain ownership of Tiara Yachts under the S2 umbrella.

AssuredPartners, Inc. has acquired the employee benefits business of Bluepoint Financial, LLC (formerly Schaefer Financial Group) based in Bethesda, Maryland. The Bluepoint team, led by Marc Schaefer and Brian Hutt, will remain in place as AssuredPartners expands its employee benefits presence in the Washington, D.C. area.

International private equity firm Cinven has completed the final sell down of its remaining shares in Nasdaq-listed Medpace, realising its investment from the Fifth Cinven Fund. Medpace, a Cincinnati-based global contract research organisation (CRO), expanded internationally and grew its workforce substantially under Cinven's ownership before its August 2016 IPO and subsequent sell downs, with the final sell down achieved at a significant premium to the IPO price.

Emerald Expositions Events, Inc. acquired a leading technology event and a group of complementary technology intelligence brands from EH Media for approximately $28 million in cash. The purchase includes brands such as Total Tech Summit, CEPro, Commercial Integrator, Security Sales & Integration, and Campus Safety, and brings EH Media's Framingham-based team into Emerald to strengthen Emerald's trade show and digital content capabilities.

Deluxe Corporation's WAUSAU Financial Systems acquired the remittance processing business of First Data Corporation for $93 million in cash. The acquisition integrates remittance processing, image-capture software and related treasury management capabilities into Deluxe Financial Services' Treasury Management Solutions to enhance efficiency and funds availability for financial institutions and corporate clients.

AGC Inc. (Tokyo) has agreed to acquire the electronics business of US-based Park Electrochemical Corp. for about ¥16 billion. The deal transfers Park's CCL and related printed-circuit materials operations (with manufacturing in the US, Singapore and France) to AGC to strengthen its high-end materials and next-generation high-speed communications product portfolio; Park will retain its aerospace business and remain a US public company.

Butcher Engineering Enterprises, Ltd., a holding of the family-owned Spencer Butcher Group, acquired the Autrans Ingersoll value-added assembly operations from Autrans Corporation (a subsidiary of Sojitz Corporation). The transaction transfers the Ingersoll, Ontario automotive just-in-time/just-in-sequence assembly operation to Spencer Butcher Group, expanding its high-complexity, high-volume manufacturing capabilities.

CHRYSO has signed an agreement to acquire certain operating business divisions and assets of Italian chemicals manufacturer RUREDIL S.p.a., covering concrete admixtures, cement additives, technical mortars, fibers and products for decorative concrete and restoration (excluding the Rurmec brand and the structural reinforcement division). The consideration was not disclosed; trade unions are being consulted and completion is expected over the summer subject to customary conditions precedent.

Hardwoods Distribution Inc., via its U.S. subsidiary Rugby Holdings LLC, purchased certain distribution assets of Atlanta Hardwood Corporation for US$3.7 million. The acquired operations — including Hardwoods of Atlanta, Hardwoods of North Georgia and Hardwoods of Alabama — will be consolidated into Hardwoods’ existing Atlanta and Suwanee facilities and operate under HDI’s Rugby brand, adding about US$13 million of annual sales.

Utimaco announced it will acquire the Atalla hardware security module (HSM) and Enterprise Secure Key Manager (ESKM) business lines from Micro Focus to strengthen its HSM product portfolio and expand into the payments market. The transaction — announced May 18, 2018 — is subject to customary regulatory approvals and was expected to close in fall 2018; Utimaco said it will retain and invest in the Atalla team at its California location.

Cinven's Fifth Fund has agreed to sell Ufinet Group, a Madrid-headquartered independent fibre network operator, to a consortium led by Antin Infrastructure Partners (acquiring Ufinet Spain) and Cinven's Sixth Fund (acquiring Ufinet International) for an undisclosed consideration. Ufinet operates ~66,800 km of fibre across two continents and employs roughly 1,020 people; Cinven said the transaction generates over €1.1 billion of capital gain and is expected to complete in July 2018.

USI Insurance Services has closed the acquisition of CHS Insurance, the agribusiness insurance brokerage formerly part of CHS Inc.; terms were not disclosed. The deal expands USI’s capabilities and footprint in agribusiness, food processing and cooperative insurance and brings the CHS Insurance team onto USI’s national platform.

Granicus has acquired Accela’s Legislative Management business (formerly IQM2), taking ownership of the unit’s operations, assets and customer contracts. The deal expands Granicus’s end-to-end legislative management and citizen engagement capabilities for local government clients and brings the IQM2 team and roughly 450 customers into Granicus’s public-sector software platform.

Chongqing Boao Industrial Co., Ltd acquired the interior lighting business of Federal‑Mogul Corporation in a divestiture announced January 2018. The business — based in Sparta, Tennessee with a technical center in Ann Arbor, Michigan — manufactures interior lighting assemblies and components (overhead lamps, door/floor lamps, LED ambient lighting, trunk/under‑hood lamps) sold to light‑vehicle OEMs and Tier‑1 suppliers.

KPMG LLP has acquired the Identity and Access Management (IAM) business of Silicon Valley-based Cyberinc to strengthen its enterprise security and digital identity capabilities. The deal brings Cyberinc's ~190-person IAM team, advisory, implementation and managed services capabilities into KPMG to expand the firm's IAM and privileged user management offerings globally.