RWS to Buy SDL in Transformative Deal for the Language Industry

一场语言产业内的变革性交易:RWS将收购SDL

2020-08-27 17:30 slator

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RWS is using the clout of its all-time-high market cap for a transformative acquisition. The boards of Super Agencies RWS and SDL announced on August 27, 2020 that they “have reached agreement on the terms of a recommended all-share merger of RWS and SDL,” in a deal that sees RWS buy SDL outright. The transaction values SDL shares at 907p (i.e., GBP 854m; USD 1.128bn) — a whopping 52% premium over SDL’s most recent share price. SDL shareholders (most of which are institutional investors) will own approximately 29.5% of the combined group, with RWS shareholders owning 70.5%. The SDL brand will disappear, and all SDL units rebranded as RWS over time. The combined company will remain listed on London’s AIM market and keep its HQ in Chalfont St Peter (UK). The transaction is not a completely done deal as yet. Prior to final completion, there will be a series of shareholder votes and other regulatory steps that need to be taken. However, all-share mergers are a well-established technique, the deal already has the approval of roughly a third of both RWS and SDL shareholders, and the 52% premium is compelling. The deal is expected to be completed in Q4 2020, and RWS said they expect the transaction to result in double-digit earnings per share accretion. With pro forma FY2019 revenues of GBP 732m (USD 967m) and adjusted operating profit of GBP 116m, the combined organization will become the largest language service provider by revenue, by a wide margin — and will likely take the top spot from TransPerfect in the 2021 Slator Language Service Provider Index. RWS emphasized the two businesses’ highly complementary nature as well as combining its services business with SDL’s proprietary technology and translation workflow software as key drivers of the deal. Cost savings, of course, is another. And RWS said that after consulting with SDL management they expect at least GBP 15m in annualized cost savings from the deal. The leadership of the combined group will be firmly in RWS’ hands. Andrew Brode, Chairman of RWS, will become Chairman of the Board of the Combined Group. Richard Thompson, CEO of RWS, will become CEO of the Combined Group. Desmond Glass, CFO of RWS, will become CFO of the Combined Group. From SDL, Azad Ootam, CTO of SDL, will become CTO of the Combined Group. Current SDL CEO Adolfo Hernandez and SDL CFO Xenia Walters will leave the company, but RWS said they “will enter into a new service or consultancy agreement with RWS.” So RWS wants to keep them close, for now. A combination of RWS and SDL is the transformative acquisition the language industry has awaited for years. After Lionbridge’s failed attempt to buy TransPerfect in 2017, language industry M&A continued at a rapid clip, but was mostly focused on smaller targets in buy-and-build strategies or select technology acquisitions. A combination of RWS and SDL changes the landscape as it creates a Super Agency present in many of the most lucrative, fastest-growing language industry verticals. RWS shares were down 4% on the news as of press time. Predictably, SDL shares rallied and were up over 40%. Slator will provide in-depth coverage on the transaction over the coming days.
RWS正利用其历史最高市值的影响力,进行一项具有变革意义的收购。2020年8月27日,大型公司RWS以及SDL的董事会宣布,他们“已经就RWS和SDL全股合并的建议条款达成一致”,RWS将直接收购SDL。 此次交易对SDL股票的估值为907便士(即8.54亿英镑;11.28亿美元),高出SDL近期股价52%。 SDL股东(其中大部分为机构投资者)将拥有合并集团约29.5%的股权,而RWS股东拥有70.5%的股权。SDL品牌将下线,所有SDL单位将逐渐更名为RWS。合并后的公司将继续在伦敦AIM市场上市,其总部仍设在英国圣彼得的查尔方特。 这笔交易尚未彻底完成。在最终完成之前,还需采取一系列股东投票和其他监管步骤。然而,全股合并已经成熟,该交易已经得到RWS和SDL约三分之一股东的同意,52%的溢价也是令人信服的。 该交易预计将于2020年第四季度完成。RWS称,他们预计这笔交易将带来两位数的每股收益增长。预计2019财年收入为7.32亿英镑(即9.67亿美元),调整后营业利润为1.16亿英镑。按照收益,合并后的公司将成为最大的语言服务提供商,并有可能在2021年Slator语言服务提供商指数中从TransPerfect手中夺魁。 RWS强调,两家公司具有高度互补性,而且将自身服务业与SDL的专利技术和翻译工作流程软件相结合是促成该交易的关键因素。当然,节省成本也是一个原因。RWS表示,在与SDL管理层协商后,他们预计这笔交易每年可节省的成本至少为1500万英镑。 合并后公司的领导权将牢牢掌握在RWS手中。RWS的董事长安德鲁•布罗德(Andrew Brode)、CEO理查德·汤普森(Richard Thompson)、CFO德斯蒙德·格拉斯(Desmond Glass)将在合并后的公司继续担任原职。 而SDL的CTO阿扎德·奥特姆(Azad Ootam)也将在合并后的公司继续担任原职务。 SDL现任CEO阿道夫•埃尔南德斯(Adolfo Hernandez)和CFO齐尼亚·沃尔特斯(Xenia Walters)将离开公司,但RWS表示,他们“将与RWS签订一份新的服务或咨询协议”,因此RWS目前希望与他们保持密切关系。 RWS和SDL的合并是语言行业期待多年的变革性收购。2017年Lionbridge收购TransPerfect失败后,语言行业的并购继续快速推进,但大多集中在规模较小的收购目标上,采用的均是购并策略或精选技术收购。 而RWS和SDL的合并打破了这一局面,它在许多利润最多、增长最快的语言行业垂直领域创建了一个大型公司。 截至发稿时,RWS的股价受此消息的影响下跌了4%。不出所料,SDL股价上涨,涨幅超过40%。 Slator将在未来几天对这笔交易进行深入报道。

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