By Jessica Hodgson
LONDON--Springer Science + Business Media, the world's
second-largest publisher of scientific research journals, has hired
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) to
undertake a strategic review in a move which could see the company
being sold or floated, two people familiar with the matter said
Tuesday.
Springer Science + Business, which publishes journals for
mathematicians and scientists, is owned by Swedish private equity
group EQT and the Government Investment Corporation of Singapore,
which bought the company in 2009 from British private equity groups
Cinven and Candover.
EQT and GIC have hired JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs to pursue
"strategic options", the people said, and will look at a range of
options including an initial public offering, a sale and a possible
refinancing. The people stress that the process is at an early
stage and no sale memoranda have yet been sent to interested
parties.
EQT didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on the
process.
The possible sale of Springer Science + Business--which was
originally formed out of a unit of German media giant Bertelsmann
which was later merged with a unit of Dutch publisher Wolters
Kluwer NV--raises the possibility that it could fall back into the
hands of Bertelsmann. People familiar with the matter say
Bertelsmann is interested in academic publishing and may review
sale documents, although it isn't known whether the company will
actually bid for Springer.
Springer's adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation
and amortization for 2011--the last period for which published
information was available--were EUR313.3 million, on revenue of
EUR875 million, according to the company's annual report.
Informa PLC (INF.LN), another major information publisher, based
in the U.K., could also bid for Springer, one person said, in a
situation which could reverse previous bid interest in Informa by
Springer itself. The two companies have over the past decade been
engaged in tit-for-tat bid activity. In 2006 Springer, under
ownership by Candover and Cinven, offered 630 pence per share for
Informa, but was rejected. And in 2009, Informa made an offer for
Springer but later withdrew, saying it couldn't agree a deal in the
time required by the company's owners. A spokesman for Informa
Group declined to comment on whether they will make an offer.
Reed Elsevier, the world's largest academic publisher, isn't
likely to bid for the asset, analysts and bankers said. The company
didn't immediately return a call seeking comment.
Morgan Stanley, in a note published in June, suggested that an
acquisition of Springer by a larger third-party could prompt a wave
of consolidation across the publishing industry which could see
Informa also being acquired.
Write to jessica.hodgson@dowjones.com
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