Horizon Global Completes Sale of Asia Pacific Business Segment
September 19 2019 - 8:00AM
Business Wire
Net Proceeds to be Used to Significantly Reduce
Debt
Horizon Global Corporation (NYSE: HZN), the world’s leading
manufacturer of branded towing and trailering equipment, announced
the closing of the sale of the Company’s Asia Pacific (APAC)
business segment to Pacific Equity Partners (PEP) for AUD $340
million (approximately USD $233 million) in cash, subject to
customary closing adjustments. Horizon Global will use the net
proceeds to significantly reduce its debt and allow for increased
financial flexibility.
Carl Bizon, President and Chief Executive Officer of Horizon
Global, commented, “We would like to thank the APAC team for its
contributions to Horizon Global and its leadership throughout the
sale process. We believe the APAC business will continue to perform
well under its new ownership.”
Bizon continued, “We view the sale process as a success, and
will use a substantial portion of the net proceeds to pay down our
First Lien Term Loan. We are now better positioned to accelerate
our ongoing business improvement efforts in our remaining segments
and, importantly, continue to provide our customers with
best-in-class towing and trailering solutions.”
Andrew Charlier, Managing Director of PEP, added, “APAC is led
by an outstanding management team and has a track record of
developing innovative products and solutions for its customers. We
are excited to support management by investing in product
development, geographical expansion, and the potential acquisition
of additional brands in order to continue to deliver quality
products and services to our customers.”
Jefferies LLC served as financial advisor, and Jones Day and
Macpherson Kelley served as legal advisors to Horizon Global on the
transaction.
About Horizon Global
Horizon Global is the #1 designer, manufacturer and distributor
of a wide variety of high-quality, custom-engineered towing,
trailering, cargo management and other related accessory products
in North America, Australia and Europe. The Company serves OEMs,
retailers, dealer networks and the end consumer as the category
leader in the automotive, leisure and agricultural market segments.
Horizon provides its customers with outstanding products and
services that reflect the Company’s commitment to market
leadership, innovation and operational excellence. The Company’s
mission is to utilize forward-thinking technology to develop and
deliver best-in-class products for our customers, engage our
employees and create value for our shareholders.
Horizon Global is home to some of the world’s most recognized
brands in the towing and trailering industry, including: BULLDOG,
Draw-Tite, Fulton, Hayman Reese, Reese, ROLA, Tekonsha, and
Westfalia. Horizon Global has approximately 4,200 employees in 37
facilities across 18 countries. For more information, please visit
www.horizonglobal.com.
About PEP
Founded in 1998, Pacific Equity Partners (PEP) is a leading
Australian private equity firm with over A$4.5 billion in funds
currently under management. The team provides strategic management
experience and capital resources to generate sustainable value
within the PEP Funds’ operating companies through a focus on
supporting management to drive operational improvement and realize
additional growth opportunities. Funds advised by PEP have
completed over 30 platform acquisitions and over 100 bolt-on
acquisitions across a broad range of industries. PEP has been the
recipient of a number of awards in recent years, including Firm of
the Year, Best LBO Deal of the Year and Private Equity Firm of the
Year.
Further information on PEP and its operating companies can be
found at www.pep.com.au.
Forward-Looking
Statements
This release contains “forward-looking statements” as defined in
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
Forward-looking statements contained herein speak only as of the
date they are made and give our current expectations or forecasts
of future events. These forward-looking statements can be
identified by the use of forward-looking words, such as “may,”
“could,” “should,” “estimate,” “project,” “forecast,” “intend,”
“expect,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “target,” “plan” or other
comparable words, or by discussions of strategy that may involve
risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements are
subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties which
could materially affect our business, financial condition or future
results including, but not limited to; the Company’s ability to
meet its covenants in the agreements governing its debt, or obtain
any amendments or waivers thereto; the Company’s ability to
successfully refinance all or a portion of its secured debt; the
Company’s ability to regain compliance with the NYSE’s continued
listing standards and maintain such compliance; the Company’s
leverage; liabilities imposed by the Company’s debt instruments;
market demand; competitive factors; supply constraints; material
and energy costs; technology factors; litigation; government and
regulatory actions, including the impact of any tariffs, quotas or
surcharges; the Company’s accounting policies; future trends;
general economic and currency conditions; various conditions
specific to the Company’s business and industry; the success of our
Action Plan, including the actual amount of savings and timing
thereof; the success of our business improvement initiatives in
Europe-Africa, including the amount of savings and timing thereof;
the Company’s exposure to product liability claims from customers
and end users, and the costs associated therewith; and other risks
that are discussed in the Company’s most recent Annual Report on
Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q or Current Reports on
Form 8-K. The risks described herein are not the only risks facing
our Company. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known
to us or that we currently deemed to be immaterial also may
materially adversely affect our business, financial position and
results of operations or cash flows. We caution readers not to
place undue reliance on such statements, which speak only as of the
date hereof. We do not undertake any obligation to review or
confirm analysts’ expectations or estimates or to release publicly
any revisions to any forward-looking statement to reflect events or
circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of
unanticipated events.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190919005399/en/
Jeff Tryka, CFA Investor Relations (616) 295-2509
jtryka@horizonglobal.com
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