Spectris sells off Omega Engineering for £400m, paving the way for a larger investor
British electrical engineering firm Spectris has confirmed it will sell off Omega Engineering for $525m (£403m), to make way for a larger investor.
The London-listed group has sold the engineering business to Arcline Investment Management, for around 20 times Omega’s adjusted earnings before interest, depreciation and amortisation, Spectris said in a regulatory filing this morning.
Shares jumped more than 5.5 per cent to 2,655.00p per share by mid-morning.
Omega will fall under the wing of the Dwyer Group, an Arcline portfolio company.
The deal, in which Jefferies acted as sole financial adviser, will streamline Spectris into a “more focused, more profitable, and more resilient business”, chief executive Andrew Health said.
“We are more aligned than ever to end markets with attractive growth trajectories, supported by key sustainability themes,” he said in a statement. “The divestment of Omega will further improve our financial profile.”
It comes as Egham-headquartered Spectris announces a £300m share programme, to help boost investments in research and development.
The buyback scheme will see Spectris launch a first tranche of £150m, subject to shareholder approval in late May.
“This disposal, in conjunction with the share buyback programme, delivers clear value for shareholders, whilst also allowing us to take advantage of new growth opportunities for our core businesses, in line with our purpose,” the Spectris boss added.