Satellite operator Maxar to go private in $6.4B deal with Advent
- Kerry Flynn, author of Axios Pro: Media Deals
Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios
Boston-based private equity firm Advent International's deal to buy Maxar Technologies is its latest investment in defense and cybersecurity businesses.
Why it matters: Private equity money has been funneling into health care, retail and tech. This deal to take a publicly traded, defense-focused telecom business private stands out.
Details: Advent said Friday it has agreed to acquire Maxar at $53 per share in cash, a 129% premium on Thursday's closing stock price. The deal is valued at $6.4 billion, including debt. . ."
READ MORE https://www.axios.com/pro/media-deals/2022/12/19/maxar-technologies-advent-deal
Advent International Acquires Maxar Technologies for $6.4 Billion
Maxar stockholders to receive $53.00 per share in cash, a 129% premium to prior closing price
Maxar to remain U.S.-controlled and operated company following close
Advent brings 35+ year investment track record with significant experience in global security and defense
Transaction will support Maxar to accelerate investment in and development of the Company’s next-generation satellite technologies and data insights for its customers
WESTMINSTER, Colo. & BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Maxar Technologies (NYSE:MAXR) (TSX:MAXR) (“Maxar” or the “Company”), provider of comprehensive space solutions and secure, precise, geospatial intelligence, today announced that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement to be acquired by Advent International (“Advent”), one of the largest and most experienced global private equity investors, in an all-cash transaction that values Maxar at an enterprise value of approximately $6.4 billion. Advent is headquartered in the United States and has a demonstrable track record as a responsible owner of defense and security businesses. Following the close of the transaction, Maxar will remain a U.S.-controlled and operated company.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221216005078/en/
Boston-based private equity firm Advent International and Canada-based British Columbia Investment Management Corp. have finalized their acquisition of Maxar Technologies in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $6.4 billion, or $53.00 per share.1 hour ago
Satellite imaging giant Maxar to be acquired by private equity firm for $6.4 billion
Advent International to acquire Maxar in mid-2023. The satellite firm is a major provider of space-based imaging for the National Reconnaissance Office.
Satellite imagery taken by Maxar Technologies on Aug. 29, 2022 shows the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in Ukraine. (Satellite image ©2022 Maxar Technologies)
WASHINGTON — Maxar, a major supplier of satellite imagery for American national security agencies, has entered into an agreement to be purchased by private equity firm Advent International for $6.4 billion, the company announced today.
One of the biggest players in providing commercial imagery, Maxar is the successor company to Digital Globe, which for a long time was the only commercial firm with a National Reconnaissance Office contract. Now one of three providers of imagery for NRO, it is believed — though impossible to confirm given how NRO does contracts — that Maxar remains the largest supplier. The firm has also built a public reputation through its Maxar News Bureau, which regularly makes public satellite photos of news events such as the war in Ukraine or massive wildfires.
In a statement announcing the deal, both sides pitched the move as something that would benefit Maxar long term.
“Maxar will be able to accelerate investments in next-generation satellite technologies and data insights that are vital to the Company’s government and commercial customers, as well as pursue select, strategic M&A to further enhance the Company’s portfolio of solutions,” per the statement.
“This includes supporting the successful delivery of the new Legion satellite constellation, accelerating the launch of Legion 7 and 8 satellites and further growing the Earth Intelligence and Space Infrastructure businesses through investments in next-generation capabilities, such as advanced machine learning and 3D mapping.”
Maxar is a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange. Advent plans to pay out investors at $53 a share, which Advent notes is “129% over Maxar’s closing stock price of $23.10 on December 15, 2022, the last full trading day prior to this announcement, an approximately 135% premium to the 60-day volume-weighted average price prior to this announcement, and a premium of approximately 34% over Maxar’s 52-week high.”
The deal is expected to close mid-2023, according to the announcement. Advent, which is based in Boston, claims $89 billion in managed assets. The company says it has “$28 billion invested across the defense, security and cybersecurity sectors in the last three years.” The firm’s highest-profile defense buy in recent years was the 2020 purchase of UK defense firm Cobham; within 18 months it had broken the company up and sold off pieces.
Commercial imaging has become increasingly important over the last decade, as advances in commercial technology have led to cameras that are on par, if not superior, to larger legacy US government systems.
“Today’s announcement is an exceptional outcome for stockholders and is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our team, the value Maxar has created and the reputation we have built in our industry,” Daniel Jablonsky, President and CEO of Maxar, said in a statement. “Advent has a proven record of strengthening its portfolio companies and a desire to support Maxar in advancing our long-term strategic objectives. As a private company, we will have enhanced flexibility and additional resources to build on Maxar’s strong foundation, further scale operations and capture the significant opportunities in a rapidly expanding market.”
“We have tremendous respect and admiration for Maxar, its industry-leading technology and the vital role it serves in supporting the national security of the United States and its allies around the world,” said David Mussafer, chairman and managing partner of Advent. “We will prioritize Maxar’s commitment as a core provider to the U.S. defense and intelligence communities, and allies, while providing Maxar with the financial and operational support necessary to apply its technology and team members even more fully to the missions and programs of its government and commercial customers.”
How Space Force, NRO are sharing the ground-tracking mission, for now
“The good news about this approach is this really fits my priority of speed, speed and speed,” Frank Calvelli, space acquisition czar at the Department of the Air Force, said of the plan to have NRO take the lead with Space Force oversight and some funding.
Advent, BCI Close Maxar Acquisition - GovCon Wire
Maxar completes $6.4B sale to private equity
Maxar Technologies, the satellite imaging and manufacturing company, has completed its $6.4 billion sale to private equity.
The company announced on Wednesday that it was no longer listed on the New York Stock Exchange following the closing of the acquisition by PE firm Advent International and minority investor British Columbia Investment Management Corporation. It will shortly be delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange.
The entities announced their merger agreement in December, stipulating that outstanding Maxar shares would be acquired for $53 per share in an all-cash deal.
The Westminster, Colorado-based space company is the result of a 2017 merger between DigitalGlobe and MDA Holdings Company. The company later sold MDA’s assets for $1 billion CAD ($765 million). Maxar has had a series of highs and lows since then; it concluded 2018 with a $1.26 billion loss due to a bottomed-out stock price, in part due to the loss of a major imaging satellite.
But since then, the company has steadily recovered its stock price, ending 2022 with an estimated $2 billion in revenue. The company has scored major contracts from the U.S. government and defense, including a $3.2 billion contract from the National Reconnaissance Office last year. More recently, Maxar landed a contract from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency worth up to $192 million over five years. . ."
Private equity firm closes $6.4 billion deal to acquire Maxar Technologies
WASHINGTON — The $6.4 billion buyout of Maxar Technologies is complete and the company is now officially private. Its stock ceased trading on the New York Stock Exchange, the company announced May 3.
Maxar, based in Westminster, Colorado, operates a fleet of high-resolution imaging satellites and manufacturers satellites in Palo Alto, California,
The company was acquired for $53 per share by the U.S. private equity firm Advent International and minority investor British Columbia Investment Management Corp. in a deal announced in December.
“With the closing of the transaction, Maxar will remain a U.S.-controlled, owned and operated company,” the company said. Maxar’s common stock will also be delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Maxar started trading on the New York Stock Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange in 2017. It officially became a U.S. corporation in 2020 when the company spun off the Canadian subsidiary MDA. MDA in 2012 had purchased the Palo Alto-based satellite manufacturer Space Systems Loral and in 2017 acquired the Westminster-based Earth-imaging firm DigitalGlobe. The combined companies were rebranded Maxar Technologies.
The company’s origin goes back to 1957. Western Development Laboratories, a division of Philco, was the first building block of what would eventually become Maxar. Western Development Laboratories launched its first communications satellite in 1960. The following year, Philco was purchased by Ford Motor Co. The combined Philco-Ford became Space Systems Loral in 1990.
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