Arconic Bought By Apollo, Going Private

GRETCHEN’S SPOON

Arconic, a Pittsburgh-based company with a plant in Riverdale, has been acquired.

The company announced Thursday morning that Apollo Global Management, Inc. is buying the company for $5.2 billion. The purchase includes a minority investment of funds managed by subsidiaries of Irenic Capital Management.

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In the Quad-Cities, Arconic employs 2,400 people, according to the Quad-Cities Chamber of Commerce. It was not immediately clear Thursday whether and to what extent the sale would affect the Riverdale plant.

The deal calls for Arconic shareholders to receive $30 per share in cash, representing a premium of approximately 36% to the company’s closing stock price on February 27. Upon completion of the transaction, Arconic’s stock will cease to be traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Exchange, and Arconic will become a private company.

“This transaction represents value realization for Arconic shareholders at a significant premium and enables the company to execute on its long-term strategic vision. We are pleased to reach this agreement with Apollo,” said Fritz Henderson, Chairman of the Board of Arconic Administration. “The Board decided to approve this transaction after a thorough and thoughtful review of a number of shareholder value creation opportunities.”

Multiple strategic investments are expected to take place, including upgrades to key machine centers to maximize the full potential of the company’s capabilities, technology upgrades to bring plants and process controls up to state-of-the-art standards, and investments in projects that will provide for a cleaner environment in the communities in which the company operates.

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Arconic CEO Tim Myers said the acquisition sets the company up to be backed by “one of the world’s leading investment firms and will allow us to leverage the expertise and relationships of the investment industry Apollo to achieve our long-term strategic goals.”

A partner at Apollo Global Management, Gareth Turner, said the company is already serving a growing market and wants to continue that mission.

“As aluminum continues to gain share in markets seeking a sustainable, high-performance material in a wide variety of applications, we believe there is a strong trajectory for growth in markets around the world. We are looking forward to supporting the experienced Arconic team with our resources and industry knowledge to help the company achieve its long-term goals,” he said.

The acquisition is expected to close in the second half of 2023, subject to customary closing conditions, including approval by Arconic shareholders and receipt of regulatory approvals.

Arconic’s revenue shares have been slowly declining.

In November 2022, the company announced that it was selling its Russian assets following the conflict with Ukraine. That was a loss of $304 million after tax.

Fourth-quarter revenue was down 9% year-over-year and up 2% due to growth in the aerospace, packaging, building and construction and ground transportation end markets, according to a press release. It reported a net loss of $273 million, or $2.70 per share. During the same time period in 2021, the company posted a net loss of $38 million, or 36 cents per share.

Adjusted earnings were reported at $154 million. Excluding Russian operations, earnings were $145 million, down 5% year-on-year on a comparable basis, primarily due to operational challenges in the quarter that affected industrial production, the company said.

Cash from operations was $188 million and capital expenditures were $70 million.

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Despite the setbacks in the fourth quarter, Arconic closed the financial year strongly. Revenue increased 19% from 2021 levels and 10% organically, due to sales and growth in related fields. A net loss of $182 million, or $1.75 per share, was reported in 2022, compared to a net loss of $397 million, or $3.65 per share, in 2021.

For the first quarter of 2023, sales were down 12% year-over-year, but were up 6% organically and 6% quarter-on-quarter on a comparable basis excluding Russian operations. Net income was $25 million, or $0.24 per share, compared to $42 million, or $0.39 per share reported in the first quarter of 2022. Adjusted EBITDA was $157 million, up 8% from the prior quarter on a comparable basis, excluding Russian operations. .