AgriBriefing rumoured to be up for sale

AgriBriefingBetaville is reporting that agribusiness media, price reporting and intelligence company AgriBriefing is about to be sold by its private equity owners, Lyceum Capital.

AgriBriefing creates and sells prices for eggs, red meat and animal feed and publishes the Farmers Guardian. The company also runs Britain’s largest farm machinery and equipment show – Lamma.

Reports suggest that Lyceum is unlikely to begin a sale process until later this year or early 2019 as it has just appointed Raymond James to carry out a strategic review.

UK, London

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Bauer Media acquires three homes titles from News Corp

Bauer Media GroupThe Bauer Media Group has acquired magazines Inside Out and Country Style and Homes website HomeLife.com.au from News Corp. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

The titles join Bauer’s existing suite of Homes magazines, which are Real Living, Australian House and Garden and Belle. These offerings are complemented by the publisher’s Homes to Love digital platform for this category.

The general manager for publishing at Bauer Media, Fiorella Di Santo, said, “We’re thrilled to bring Inside Out, Country Style and HomeLife.com.au to Bauer. Although we already have a strong position in the Homes category, this acquisition is a natural fit for us in terms of further deepening our category specialisation. We will now be part of the entire customer Homes journey, no matter what budget, geographical area or aesthetic.

Bauer CEO Paul Dykzeul said, “We are extremely pleased to announce this news as it’s a key milestone in delivering against our core strategic priorities, our strategic business growth and our commitment to invest in deep category specialisation. It is the first acquisition for Bauer in Australia since we bought beautyheaven in 2015, and it signifies our position of leadership as subject matter experts in this category.”

Germany, Hamburg & USA, New York, NY

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CRU Group acquires Steel Market Update

CRU GroupCRU Group, the metals, mining and fertilizer consultancy, has acquired the US-based Steel Market Update conference, training and newsletter business. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Founded in 2008, Steel Market Update provides and analyses real-time pricing, market trends, and relevant information related to the North American flat rolled steel market through its newsletter, website and events.

Robert Perlman, Chairman of CRU, said, “We are delighted to be joining forces with John and his team. Our businesses have a shared commitment to independent and insightful coverage of the steel market. CRU’s global position will be greatly strengthened by SMU’s coverage of North America. The SMU brand will go from strength to strength under the CRU umbrella.”

UK, London & USA, Hobe Sound, FL

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Warburg Pincus invests in Reorg Research

Warburg PincusWarburg Pincus has acquired a controlling stake in Reorg Research, an industry-leading provider of real-time news, commentary, and analysis on issues affecting the distressed debt, event-driven and leveraged finance markets. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Founded in 2013 by former distressed debt investor Kent Collier, Reorg leverages powerful proprietary technology to collect data in real-time and apply machine learning and natural language processing to filter the information, all in one easy-to-find place. The company also has a dedicated team of experts comprised of journalists, former lawyers and investment bankers that leverage Reorg’s proprietary technology to deliver industry-leading editorial content. Reorg currently has a suite of six SaaS-based products, each with a distinct value proposition, that a diverse and loyal global client base – including leading hedge funds, investment banks, law firms and financial advisors – uses to make better business and investment decisions.

This latest deal reflects heightened investor interest in providers of specialist content; the agreement follows Fitch Group’s purchase last week of Fulcrum Financial Data, a rival distressed-debt research firm whose publications include Covenant Review and LevFin Insights. In 2017, BC Partners sold a minority stake in Acuris, which publishes the trade publications Debtwire and Mergermarket, at a valuation of £1bn. Blackstone earlier this year bought a majority stake in Thomson Reuters Financial & Risk at a valuation of $20bn.

Kent Collier, the distressed-debt investor and blogger who launched Reorg in 2013, said, “Data is compounding at a geometric rate around the world and there is too much of it to be analysed by editorial talent alone”.

Chandler Reedy, Managing Director at Warburg Pincus, said, “Kent is a unique talent, and he and his team have built a highly differentiated business and technology platform with team of experts that synthesize and analyze real-time, mission-critical information highly sought by their customers. As the clear market leader with a proven growth model across multiple products and geographies, we believe Reorg is exceptionally well positioned for continued growth.”

USA, New York, NY

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Fitch Group acquires Fulcrum Financial Data

Fitch GroupFitch Group, a unit of Hearst, is to acquire Fulcrum Financial Data, the provider of leveraged finance and distressed debt analysis, news and data, from Leeds Equity Partners. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Fulcrum Financial Data includes financial news brands such as Covenant Review, LevFin Insights, CapitalStructure and PacerMonitor, and will become part of the group’s Fitch Solutions division. Fitch Solutions provides credit and macro intelligence, and is the primary distributor of Fitch Ratings content. Fulcrum CEO Steve Miller will continue to lead the business, reporting to Dr. Ranjit Tinaikar, President of Fitch Solutions.

Paul Taylor, President and CEO of Fitch Group, said, “Fulcrum’s leveraged and distressed debt expertise is a strong complement to our Fitch Ratings business, where we already have great presence and momentum in these markets. Adding such influential brands as Covenant Review and LevFin Insights reinforces Fitch’s role as a leading source of information, insights and tools for leveraged finance market participants.”

USA, New York NY

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Kelsey Media acquires Stuff gadget magazine from Haymarket

Kelsey MediaKelsey Media has acquired best-selling gadget magazine Stuff from the Haymarket Media Group. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Acquired by Haymarket in 1999, Stuff has kept its readers informed on global technological changes and has documented and explained major tech trends. In addition to the Stuff magazine, Stuff.TV filters the most important gadget news and happenings, keeping consumers in the loop with reviews, videos, how-tos, interviews and features.

Kelsey Media CEO Steve Wright sais, “Stuff was there at the start of the tech revolution and it’s inspired several generations of passionate tech-loving consumers since. I’m delighted that the Stuff team will be joining Kelsey and we’ll be working together to inspire the next generation of gadget fiends.”

UK, London & Cudham

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Quartz Sequoia acquires two Prysm events

Quartz Business MediaQuartz Sequoia Events, organiser of Elevate, has acquired the Elite Sports and the sports rehabilitation COPA events from Prysm Group, extending its existing trade event portfolio within the sport, fitness and health sector. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

In May 2018 Elite Sports and COPA took place slightly earlier in the year, co-locating with Elevate in preparation for the acquisition. The shows reported an increase in visitors and a combined total of more than 8,000.

Max Quittenton, founder of Elevate, commented: “It’s a testament to the success of Elevate and the incredible support that we have seen by the industry, that we have been able to make this expansion and encompass over 300 exhibitors in our third year. The continued industry growth and enthusiasm to invest and innovate in health and fitness markets within the UK, has enabled us to create a strong community that seeks to promote physical activity for all. Elevate was created to bring together the fitness, healthcare and performance sectors, so this acquisition makes perfect sense.”

Elevate 2019 will continue to focus on the challenge of inactivity through inclusivity, innovation and scientific research. With more emphasis on elite sports, rehabilitation and healthcare; participants in the future can expect to find learnings from the performance sector more accessible and the research and valuable opinions of health experts strongly represented in high-level conference and seminar programmes.

UK, Redhill & Bristol

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YouGov acquires SMG Insight

smg_0YouGov, a market research and data analytics group, has acquired SMG Insight Limited, a global sports research agency. During 2010, YouGov formed a strategic research partnership with SMG Insight to support the agency’s growth and the Company has since held a 20% stake in the business. YouGov is to acquire the remaining 80% stake.

SMG Insight specialises in media measurement and sponsorship evaluation in the sports sector. With operations in the UK, US, UAE, India and Australia, SMG Insight has developed a global network of industry contacts and sponsors including the ATP World Tour, Emirates and the Volvo Ocean Race.

The remaining 80% stake is being acquired from Frank Saez, the founder and Managing Director of SMG Insight, who will continue in his role leading the team of 55 employees.  

As at 31 March 2018, SMG Insight had gross assets of £2.4 million and it generated £1.2 million PBT in the year to 31 March 2018. Cash consideration of £1 million is payable at completion, with a further £1 million payable in 12 months, in addition to deferred consideration reflecting a 4.25x multiple of EBITDA to be paid over a three year period. Total consideration is capped at £21 million.

Stephan Shakespeare, CEO of YouGov, commented: “For the SMG team, this represents a logical and exciting development as they see a strong partner of many years become a strong and committed parent. Frank and his team are leaders in the industry, and this deal represents another positive step in line with our guiding strategy: to align differentiated products and services in a single connected data system and generate new opportunities for growth.”

UK, London

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Tarsus and EJK acquire a 60% interest of Expo Restaurantes in Mexico

exporestaurantesE.J. Krause and Associates and Tarsus have acquired a 60% interest of Expo Restaurantes. Established 18 years ago Expo Restaurantes is a restaurant supplier show in Mexico. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The deal also includes Pescamar (the leading fish and seafood exhibition in Mexico) which is co-located with Expo Restaurantes and is sponsored by both the Agriculture Ministry in Mexico as well as CONAPESCA (the National Commission of Fish and Aquaculture).

Ned Krause, President and CEO of E.J. Krause and Associates said: “I am excited by this new acquisition in Mexico given that E.J. Krause and Tarsus have a long and successful history of working together in this market. Expo Restaurantes and Pescamar are perfect vehicles for us to enter this growing market in Mexico.”

Douglas Emslie, Tarsus Group Managing Director, said: “We are happy to be growing our portfolio of events in Mexico with our established partner EJ Krause. The team will also work closely with our World Food Expo (WOFEX) event in South East Asia to exploit the synergies between each of them to grow, broaden and further internationalise.”

The next edition of Expo Restaurantes will be held on 27-29 June 2018 in the World Trade Center, Mexico City.

Related reporting: Tarsus form joint venture with EJK in Mexico Posted on November 27, 2013

UK, London & USA, Bethesda, MD & Mexico, Mexico City

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