On Monday, electrical equipment manufacturer AZZ (AZZ 1.60%) announced that it has agreed to purchase energy services company Aquilex Specialty Repair and Overhaul for $250 million.
Aquilex, a holding of private equity firm Centerbridge Partners, specializes in the maintenance and repair of both nuclear and fossil fuel power plants and refineries and does maintenance and "life-extension" work on other industrial plants. AZZ is adding it to expand its capability in electrical and industrial products.
From a financial perspective, AZZ notes that it expects Aquilex to produce about $225 million to $250 million in annual revenue. As such, the roughly one times annual sales price it is paying for the company offers a significant discount to the 1.9 times sales valuation AZZ's own shares command. Accordingly, investors are applauding the purchase, bidding AZZ shares up 4.1% in Monday trading, to close at $43.43.
AZZ added in a press release that it expects the acquisition to be accretive to earnings in the amount of $0.25 to $0.30 per share in the first year after closing (expected to occur sometime in the next 30 days). Aquilex is expected to contribute as much as $0.50 to $0.60 to per-share profits in the second year of ownership.
