ATS Launches Voluntary Tender Give for World Food stuff & Beverage Devices Supplier CFT S.p.A.

CAMBRIDGE, ON, Dec. 7, 2020 /CNW/ – ATS Automation Tooling Devices Inc. (TSX: ATA) (“ATS” or the “Organization”), an marketplace-main automation options supplier, now declared its intention to receive, by way of a voluntary community tender provide, CFT S.p.A. (Bit: CFT) (“CFT”), an founded global supplier to the food stuff and beverage tools market place. The tender present of €4.60 for every share signifies a full fairness value of €88 million and a whole enterprise worth of €166 million (~C$260 million).

ATS Launches Voluntary Tender Give for World Food stuff & Beverage Devices Supplier CFT S.p.A.

“This is a really strategic transaction that will enable us to establish a broader growth system for ATS in the regulated meals and beverage equipment sector, and positions us well in beautiful niches,” reported Andrew Hider, CEO of ATS.  “With a 75-12 months observe history, established technology and a committed workforce of 900-plus workers, CFT allows us to seize much more of the benefit chain in a vertical we covet for its steadiness and advancement, and enhances our current MARCO acquisition. CFT also provides major worth development potential for ATS shareholders as we function with the CFT group to use the ATS Company Product to attain cost and profits synergies.”

“As an field chief in automation with a very long monitor history of innovating for customers, ATS is preferably suited to take CFT to the next amount in our marketplaces,” reported Roberto Catelli, Agent of the Important Shareholders of CFT. “The main shareholders are quite pleased to support this transaction as it will generate both of those prospect and worth for CFT, our prospects and employees in the a long time ahead.”

Set up in 1945 and headquartered in Parma, Italy, CFT serves a world wide client base as a result of its portfolio of sector-foremost models and 8 amenities in Italy, Spain, Germany and Ukraine. With 140 patents, the business is a engineering chief in the desirable clean generate sorting, processing, and packaging niches. In 2019, CFT produced income of €254 million and EBITDA of €17.5 million. Roughly 40% of its revenue will come from Europe, 23% from North The us and the remainder from other areas. CFT derives 30% of its profits from one equipment, 50% from comprehensive systems, and 20% from aftermarket components & expert services. The ordinary shares of CFT are now listed on the Purpose Italia inventory trade.&#13

Sizeable Synergy Possibility
ATS expects to accomplish roughly €7 million in yearly charge synergies within just 3 many years of closing, including elimination of CFT’s general public company expenditures, provide chain financial savings, and value construction optimization. ATS also expects income synergies to generate somewhere around €7 million of EBITDA inside of 3 yrs from joint solution development, cross-marketing of complementary purchaser alternatives and aftermarket initiatives. The transaction is envisioned to be accretive to ATS’ earnings and money circulation for every share in the 1st calendar year following the acquisition. ATS is concentrating on a double-digit return on invested money (ROIC) by the third 12 months next completion of the acquisition.

Critical Present Terms and Framework
The tender supply is getting launched by ATS Automation Holdings Italy S.r.l., a minimal legal responsibility firm indirectly and wholly controlled by ATS, to receive 100% of CFT’s exceptional shares and voting legal rights. The supply price has been established at €4.60 for every share in income, symbolizing a whole organization worth of €166 million and a high quality equivalent to 86% in excess of the formal cost of CFT’s regular shares as of December 4, 2020 (the investing day prior to the announcement of the offer).

The tender interval below provide will commence if and when acceptance is received from the relevant Italian regulatory authority.  It is expected that such acceptance could be granted in January 2021. After authorised, the tender time period will continue to be open up for a period of time identified in session with the Italian inventory exchange, envisioned to be between 15 and 40 buying and selling times. On this basis, it is approximated that the transaction could near in the first calendar quarter of 2021.

The voluntary tender offer is topic to several closing conditions, like that: (i) ATS be in a posture to receive at the very least 90% of exceptional everyday share money by the close of the give period of time in order to influence the delisting of CFT’s standard shares from the Aim Italia, (ii) specified alterations to the by-rules of CFT are approved by its shareholders, (iii) specific lock-up preparations are waived, and (iv) customary regulatory approvals are been given, together with clearance by the German anti-have confidence in authority and approval from the Spanish Foreign Investment decision Authority. In the party that significantly less than 90% of the remarkable normal shares of CFT are submitted to the tender present, ATS may possibly elect to close on this kind of lesser amount of money and pursue other procedures for effecting the delisting. In addition, if considerably less than 100% of the remarkable shares of CFT are submitted pursuant to the tender offer you, ATS will retain minority shareholder passions in CFT ought to it proceed to entire the tender offer you.

ATS will finance the tender provide via a combination of money on hand and drawing down on its revolving credit rating facility.&#13

Next completion of the tender provide, CFT will keep on to operate by way of its established operational amenities and headquarters that ATS intends to retain in Italy.

Tender Supply Supported by Major Shareholders
ATS has entered into an agreement with specific big shareholders of CFT, at present symbolizing 38.5% of CFT’s superb common share funds and 60.6% of connected voting legal rights, wherein these types of shareholders have agreed to irrevocably post their shares to the tender supply.

Advisors
UniCredit S.p.A. is acting as lead money advisor to ATS on this transaction. TD Securities is also performing as economical advisor to ATS. Clifford Prospect is acting as legal counsel to ATS.

Meeting Connect with and Webcast
ATS will host an analyst conference connect with and accompanying webcast to discuss the transaction at 8:30 a.m. Eastern on Monday December 7, 2020.  The presentation and webcast can be accessed reside at www.atsautomation.com. To take part in the convention call, please dial (647) 427-7450 five minutes prior. A replay of the convention will be available on the ATS web page adhering to the phone. Alternatively, a telephone recording of the call will be out there for 1 7 days (until finally midnight December 14, 2020) by dialing (416) 849-0833 and moving into passcode 8485216 followed by the quantity indication.

About ATS
ATS is an sector-primary automation alternatives provider to lots of of the world’s most profitable providers. ATS takes advantage of its in depth understanding foundation and world wide capabilities in custom made automation, repeat automation, automation goods and value-included providers, together with pre-automation and soon after-gross sales solutions, to handle the advanced producing automation devices and service needs of multinational buyers in markets these kinds of as existence sciences, chemical substances, consumer solutions, electronics, foodstuff, beverage, transportation, electricity, and oil and gasoline. Established in 1978, ATS employs roughly 4,200 people at 20 producing services and more than 50 workplaces in North The us, Europe, Southeast Asia and China. The Firm’s shares are traded on the Toronto Inventory Trade under the symbol ATA. Stop by the Firm’s site at www.atsautomation.com.&#13

About CFT S.p.A.
CFT S.p.A. is the operational keeping business of the CFT Group, energetic in Italy and abroad in the design and style, development and production of switch-crucial devices and techniques for the foodstuff and beverage sector. The enterprise was started in 1945, and is headquartered in Parma, Italy. CFT supports its worldwide consumer base via industry foremost brand names, eight amenities and around 900 personnel. The firm’s shares are traded on the Intention Italia inventory trade below the symbol CFT. Pay a visit to the Firm’s site at https://www.cft-team.com for far more aspects.

Note to Viewers: Non-IFRS steps:
This news release takes advantage of the non-IFRS measures EBITDA, and return on invested funds related with this expense. These conditions do not have any standardized meanings recommended in just IFRS and therefore might not be equivalent to equivalent measures introduced by other organizations. These measures should really not be deemed in isolation or as a substitute for measures of efficiency prepared in accordance with IFRS. EBITDA is outlined as earnings from operations excluding depreciation and amortization (which includes amortization of intangible belongings). EBITDA is applied by the Enterprise to evaluate the performance of functions. Administration thinks that EBITDA is an critical indicator of ability to produce functioning funds flows to fund ongoing expenditure in functions. Management believes that ATS shareholders and likely traders in ATS use these non-IFRS financial actions in producing investment selections and measuring operational success. Return on invested money involved with this expense, as employed herein, indicates in respect of any fiscal yr, the web earnings of CFT in these kinds of fiscal 12 months, divided by the buy cost for the acquisition. Return on invested cash, as utilised herein, is utilised by ATS to appraise the effectiveness of the allocation of ATS’ money.

Ahead-Looking Statements:
This information release is made up of particular statements that represent ahead-searching information and facts in the indicating of applicable securities regulations (“forward-searching statements”). This kind of forward-searching statements require acknowledged and unfamiliar risks, uncertainties and other factors that might bring about the actual benefits, efficiency or achievements of ATS or CFT, or developments in possibly ATS’ or CFT’s company or in their business, to differ materially from the expected benefits, effectiveness, achievements or developments expressed or implied by this kind of forward-wanting statements. Ahead-seeking statements include all disclosure about feasible occasions, problems or effects of operations that is based mostly on assumptions about upcoming economic circumstances and classes of motion. Forward-wanting statements could also include, devoid of limitation, any statement relating to foreseeable future gatherings, ailments or instances. ATS cautions you not to place undue reliance upon any this sort of forward-searching statements, which communicate only as of the date they are built.

Forward-searching statements in this push release relate to, among other things: statements with regard to completion of and timing for completion of the tender give, statements with respect to the predicted gains and charges of the proposed acquisition of CFT, such as the growth of the marketplace CFT serves and CFT’s positioning to meet need, anticipations relating to CFT profits and EBITDA margin, expectations relating to ATS’ return on invested capital and synergies linked with the proposed acquisition of CFT and expectations pertaining to ATS help for CFT, integration and deployment of the ATS Enterprise Model. The pitfalls and uncertainties that could influence forward-on the lookout statements include things like, amongst other individuals: general performance of the industry sectors that CFT and ATS serve the development of COVID-19 and its impacts on the Company’s and CFT’s capacity to work their respective assets, together with the attainable shut-down of amenities because of to COVID-19 outbreaks the severity and length of the COVID-19 pandemic in all jurisdictions the place the Company and CFT carry out business the character and extent of govt imposed restrictions on vacation and organization routines and the mother nature, extent, and applicability of governing administration aid courses, in each scenarios relevant to the COVID-19 pandemic, as applicable in all jurisdictions exactly where the Business and CFT conduct business enterprise the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company’s and CFT’s workers, customers, and suppliers the impression of COVID-19 on the international financial state normal market functionality which includes capital market place circumstances and availability and cost of credit foreign currency and exchange danger the relative energy of the Canadian dollar effect of components these types of as elevated pricing strain and possible margin compression the regulatory and tax setting failure or delays linked with new customer systems integration and the deployment of the ATS Business enterprise Model are not completed as speedily or proficiently as prepared or expected and, as a end result, anticipated added benefits, enhancements and synergies are not recognized that CFT’s small business does not conduct as anticipated, negatively impacting revenue and EBITDA margin and return on invested funds that one particular or far more prospects, or other people with which CFT has contracted, encounter insolvency or individual bankruptcy with resulting delays, prices or losses political, labour or supplier disruptions imposition of new obligations, tariffs or other authorized barriers that impression CFT’s marketplaces that growth in markets CFT serves is much less than expected threats relating to lawful proceedings to which CFT and/or ATS is or could grow to be a get together exposure to products liability statements risks connected with higher than expected tax liabilities or charges and other challenges detailed from time to time in ATS’ filings with Canadian provincial securities regulators.

There can be no assurance that the proposed acquisition of CFT will manifest or that the anticipated benefits and consequences of the transaction will be understood. The tender offer you is subject matter to various approvals and the success of specified conditions and there can be no assurance that any such approvals will be attained and/or any this sort of ailments will be fulfilled. The tender provide could be modified, restructured or terminated.&#13

The ahead-looking statements in this document are, until otherwise indicated, mentioned as of the day hereof and are offered for the reason of helping traders and other people in comprehension the proposed acquisition, our long term functions if the tender give is finished, our fiscal place and effects of functions as very well as our aims and strategic priorities, and may not be ideal for other purposes. Ahead-looking statements are centered on management’s current programs, estimates, projections, beliefs and viewpoints, and other than as expected by relevant securities regulations, ATS does not undertake any obligation to update ahead-looking statements ought to assumptions related to these ideas, estimates, projections, beliefs and thoughts alter.

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