Symmetry Medical (NYSE:SMA) announced on December 29th that it had acquired the surgical instruments business from Codman and Shurtleff, a Johnson & Johnson company. The transaction was done for $165.7 million in cash. The Codman & Shurtleff product line will be incorporated into Symmetry’s hospital-direct business unit.
Ashland (NYSE:ASH) announced plans to acquire International Specialty Products (ISP) in an all-cash deal for $3.2 billion. The transaction values ISP at 8.88 times its 2010 EBITDA. Despite the premium price, Ashland’s stock rose on the announcement. Ashland is expected to benefit from vertical integration opportunities.
Manning Advisors sees the deal at the high end of the range for specialty chemical companies. In data collected by Bloomberg, the average deal multiple has been 7.34X across 45 transactions over the last five years.
Ametek (NYSE:AME) announced on May 9th that it had acquired Coining Holding Company from an investor group led by River Associates Investments. The transaction was done at $148 million in cash. Coining’s annual sales are estimated at $65 million. Coining manufactures preforms, bonding wire, and other components used in electronics assemblies.
While profitability information was not made public, Manning Advisors sees this deal in excess of 10x EBITDA should standard electronic materials multiples hold for Coining. If accurate, this multiple is two to three multiple units above the 7.3X average currently in place for specialty material transactions.