1) VENUE ® Market Spotlight
HIGH VALUATIONS
October 2015 Edition
2) CONTENTS
Welcome 3
Foreword 4
Survey 5
About RR Donnelley
10
Notable Q3 deals in the room
11
VENUE® Market Spotlight: High Valuations
3) WELCOME
Dear Valued Reader,
Welcome to the October 2015 edition of the Venue Market Spotlight. In this edition, we will
look at the current state and future prospects of M&A valuations.
This year has been one of the busiest thus far for deal-makers, with the amount of money
being spent on M&A in 2015 exceeding all records. According to Mergermarket, there were
US$2.87tn-worth of deals globally in the first three quarters of 2015, up 21% on the first
three quarters of 2014. And with the news of a US$100bn deal between SABMiller and
AB InBev brewing, this trend is showing no signs of slowing down.
Cheap debt, slow organic growth prospects and other factors are fueling this spending spree
to some extent. However, alongside this have been concerns about just how much buyers are
paying for assets. Bloomberg data compiled in August, for example, found that deals worth
more than US$1bn had a median valuation of 19x EBITDA. Yet despite this, respondents to
this month’s Spotlight expect valuations to remain strong for the coming year.
In the short term, at least, M&A executives appear unconcerned about the prospect
of a valuations bubble, even though to some extent, they may be overpaying for assets.
However, while the increase in strategic acquirers will boost values in the short term, and
industrial factors such as the rise of tech and the need for consolidation will also lead to
blockbuster values, the prospect for M&A valuations when these components start to erode
is far from certain.
A top commitment we maintain at RR Donnelley is making the deal process simpler and
more efficient. Never is this of more importance than during times of high deal volume
and increased investment. We know how important speed to close can be, and every day
our clients tell us how our technology enables them to save not only time, but also money
and other resources. Our suite of Venue Deal Solutions not only securely streamlines the
entire deal process, but also vastly increases the speed of due diligence.
As always, please enjoy this month’s Spotlight.
Sincerely,
Tom Juhase
President, Financial Services Group
RR Donnelley
3
4) FOREWORD
Blockbuster deals have been a key theme of M&A in 2015. In the first
three quarters of the year there were six deals worth more than US$50bn,
compared with just two in the same period in 2014. This includes Royal
Dutch Shell’s US$81.2bn agreement to take over BG Group, a transaction
that comes at a time when energy companies are consolidating to protect
margins. Huge deals elsewhere, in the technology space for example,
are testimony to increasing corporate appetite for growth.
Yet in some quarters, these sky-high numbers are generating cause for concern.
Thomson Reuters data, for example, illustrated that the average deal valuation
in the US for the first half of 2015 was 16x EBITDA, beating the previous high
of 14.3x in 2007. One of the most high-profile deals of the year for instance —
Berkshire Hathaway’s US$37.2bn acquisition of Precision Castparts — saw the
Warren Buffett-led conglomerate pay roughly 13x EBITDA.
Despite these concerns, however, valuations look set to continue to rise, at least
in the short term, according to respondents in this month’s Spotlight. Eighty percent
believe that M&A valuations will rise in the coming 12 months, and half of those
believe it will do so significantly. Companies searching for deals, it seems, will still
be willing to pay top dollar for assets they think will lead to growth, especially at
a time when organic growth is hard to come by.
Other key findings include:
• The search for growth is seen as the key driver for increasing M&A valuations,
selected by 84% of respondents. Fifty-six percent believe that the main reasons
come down to industry-specific considerations, while 52% highlight the low
financing costs as a major incentive to buy at higher prices.
• Strategic purchases between corporates are seen as one of the most likely deal
types to have high valuation multiples, according to 88% of those surveyed. This
has been fed by corporate cash-piles increasing, as well as their thirst for growth.
Sixty percent said that they expect takeovers from private equity houses to be
one of the main buyout types with the highest valuation multiples.
• Sixty percent believe that M&A deals in general at the moment are overpriced,
a fifth of whom believe it to be significantly higher than it should be. Twenty-four
percent believe prices are fair, while just 16% believe that M&A assets are
undervalued in the current climate.
Factors such as cheap debt, poor organic growth prospects and high corporate cash
piles have helped 2015 to become a banner year in terms of M&A. And, according
to our respondents at least, this could still be the case well into the next year. With
this in mind, deal-makers are buying and out-bidding each other to get a piece of the
pie while conditions are still pleasant.
VENUE® Market Spotlight: High Valuations
Companies searching
for deals, it seems, will
still be willing to pay top
dollar for assets they
think will lead to growth.
5) SURVEY
What do you think will happen to M&A valuations in the
coming 12 months?
4%
Decrease somewhat
16%
Remain the same
Increase somewhat
40%
Increase significantly
What has been driving valuations to such high levels?
Search for growth
84%
Industry-speciï¬c
factors (ie. tech
boom, consolidation)
56%
Low ï¬nancing costs
52%
Shareholder pressure
to do deals
40%
32%
Increasing number
of hostile deals
16%
Other
4%
0
A large majority of respondents expect valuations to increase
further in the coming year. Eighty percent expect valuations to
rise, with half of those expecting the increase to be significant.
Just 4% felt valuations will decrease in the next 12 months.
Respondents who expect valuations to increase greatly cite the
anemic conditions for organic growth as a factor in generating
competition for M&A assets. “The M&A activity is now to its
highest levels from the time it peaked during the pre-crises
period; every company is looking for growth through M&A
as organic growth is hard and certainly will leave them behind
in competition,” says the VP of strategy at one corporate.
Despite the outlook for organic growth, one respondent felt
the recent shudders in global markets will make buyers more
conservative. “The market witnessed unexpected issues recently
which has shaken the business world over and from here we
will see many companies rethinking their M&A strategy and will
decide against paying a higher price for buying an asset,” says
one managing director at an investment bank. “They will look
to buy only when the target is very important or is available at
the price they desire.”
GLOBAL EXPANSION IS A KEY PART
OF THIS GROWTH SEARCH
10
20
30
40
50
60
70 80
90
As mentioned previously, the search for growth is proving
the biggest shot in the arm for M&A. Eighty-four percent of
respondents cite it as one of the drivers of high valuations.
Fifty-six percent said that industry-specific factors, such as the
technology boom and the need for consolidation in oil and gas,
for example, also provided an impetus for higher valuations.
Global expansion in particular is a key part of this growth
search according to one respondent. “The recent demand
for global expansion means cash-rich corporates and PE
firms are looking to continuously target companies in order
to meet their international objectives,” says one managing
partner at an investment bank. “This has had an impact
on the valuations as the sellers are making the best of this
situation by exiting their business as the opportunities are
high and are portrayed to be very fruitful.”
Consolidation and the technology boom were mentioned
as industry factors that have helped to fuel the valuations
bonanza. “There is quite a lot of consolidation due to
the highly competitive marketplace and the rise in the
number of players, thus making many sectors quite ripe for
consolidation,” says a finance director at a corporate.
“The technology boom is another major factor that is driving
valuations to high levels as the technology giants are investing
quite heavily into mobile technology and internet security
as well as acquisition of innovative and new products.”
5
6) SURVEY (CONTINUED)
Which sectors will see the highest valuations in the coming year?
TMT
How highly do you rate the risk of a valuation bubble bursting
within the coming year?
4%
80%
Very low
24%
Pharma, Medical
and Biotech
68%
Consumer
Middling
Somewhat high
48%
Industrials
& Chemicals
44%
24%
Energy, Mining
& Utilities
4%
Financial services
Somewhat low
4%
28%
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Indeed, the tech boom was one of the reasons that the TMT
sector was seen by the most respondents (80%) as the industry
to see the highest valuations. This was closely followed by
Pharma, Medical and Biotech, which was chosen by 68%
of respondents. The third-most expected sector to have the
highest valuations was the Consumer sector, chosen by 48%.
One private equity partner explains that the appeal of
potentially buying the next big idea, company or intellectual
property is making companies pay over the odds. “This year
has proven to be one of the great years for M&A with most
of the sectors doing pretty well and, in terms of the M&A
valuations, every sector has seen a rise in valuation,” she says.
“But I think it will be the Consumer and Technology sectors that
will prove to be the strongest sectors in terms of both deal value
as well as volumes. Technology will continue to be an exciting
space in the time to come with a lot of increase in valuation
expected in this sector.”
VENUE® Market Spotlight: High Valuations
Despite the high valuations, respondents do not expect a
valuation bubble to burst in the coming 12 month. Fifty-two
percent see a bubble bursting as either somewhat low or a very
low risk, while 44% were neutral on the risk. Just 4% thought
the risk of a bubble bursting was high.
The neutral stance taken by 44% of respondents reflects
a sureness about the market in the next 12 months – though
after that things may be more uncertain. “With the way M&A
valuations and deal values are progressing, there is always a
possibility of an M&A valuation burst, but it will not happen as
early as in the coming year,” says one private equity partner.
”People are still confident and companies are willing to spend
high on M&A to meet expansion demand and strategies, so
for another year or two the high valuations will continue and
a bubble is not expected.”
FOR ANOTHER YEAR OR TWO HIGH
VALUATIONS WILL CONTINUE
7) In which geographies do you expect to see the highest
valuations in the coming year?
North America
What types of deals do you expect to see the highest
valuation multiples in the coming year?
96%
Latin America
Strategic
buys between
corporates
88%
48%
PE takeovers
Asia
60%
48%
PE exits
Europe
40%
24%
Africa
Spin-offs
4%
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90 100
North America is expected to continue to garner the most value
by nearly all respondents (96%). Elsewhere, Latin America and
Asia was selected by almost half of respondents, while Europe
lagged behind, taking only 24%.
North America’s consistent economy is seen by respondents
as a key driver for high valuations. By contrast, the trouble
seen recently in Europe has cast doubt on how much acquirers
are willing to spend. “M&A has seen high valuations in North
America. Companies abroad will still continue to show interest
and want to invest in the region as they know the potential in
the region as well as rapid advancements in various sectors,”
says one managing director at an investment bank. “Europe
is affected by the crisis and after all the uncertainty because of
the Greece event, and I doubt the valuations will increase much
compared to other regions.”
8%
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90 100
Looking at the types of deals being done, strategic corporates
buying each other was seen by 88% as the deal type that will
yield some of the highest valuation multiples. Sixty percent
believe that PE takeovers will also have high valuation
multiples for the coming year.
Big companies coming together will provide a lot of the value
between strategics, according to one private equity partner.
“In my opinion, strategic buyouts will play a major role and
will have the highest valuation multiples,” he says. “There will
be quite a lot of strategic tie-ups between large corporates to
be witnessed in the coming time. The deal values will also see
an upward increase with more spending and investments from
large corporates.”
THERE WILL BE QUITE A LOT OF STRATEGIC
TIE UPS BETWEEN LARGE CORPORATES
7
8) SURVEY (CONTINUED)
In terms of price, how would you describe the majority of deals
done in the M&A market that you’ve seen recently?
12%
Somewhat
undervalued
16%
Fairly priced
Somewhat
overvalued
24%
Significantly
overvalued
48%
While respondents believe the high valuations will continue,
they also acknowledge that many of the assets being purchased
are being bought above market price. Sixty percent believe
that the majority of M&A deals they’ve seen in recent times are
overvalued, with a fifth of those (12% overall) thinking that they
are significantly overvalued.
The increased competition for deals is driving up multiples
as companies search for growth, according to one managing
director at an investment bank. “Recently the deals have
been slightly overvalued as the economic conditions and
the success rate of M&A has been high thus bringing more
investors and acquirers into the deal making environment,”
she says. “The previous years were seen as a buyers’ market,
but is slowly changing and I believe with the rise in demand
for targets it will soon be called a sellers’ market where
sellers will gain more benefits than the buyers.”
VENUE® Market Spotlight: High Valuations
INCREASED COMPETITION FOR DEALS
IS DRIVING UP MULTIPLES
9) 9
10) ABOUT RR DONNELLEY
RR Donnelley is a global provider of integrated communications. Our
company works collaboratively with more than 60,000 customers worldwide to
develop custom communications solutions that help to drive top-line growth,
reduce costs, enhance ROI and ensure compliance. Drawing on a range of
proprietary and commercially available digital and conventional technologies
deployed across four continents, the company employs a suite of leading
Internet based capabilities and other resources to provide premedia, printing,
logistics and business process outsourcing services to clients in virtually every
private and public sector.
RR DONNELLEY AT A GLANCE
$11.6 billion
2014 net sales
65,000+
500+
Employees
Global locations
design that allow you to easily organize, manage, share and track all of your
you can manage who has access to your data room, which documents they see,
and how they can interact with those documents.
Venue data rooms are backed by RR Donnelley, a $11.6 billion corporation with
more than 500 locations and over 65,000 employees worldwide. RR Donnelley’s
total revenues are larger than all other virtual data room providers combined.
We bring extensive experience to providing integrated communications services.
us directly.
Sr.
D
255
Fax: 212.341.7475 |venuecommunications@rrdvenue.com
Da
VENUE® Market Spotlight: 2015Valuations Outlook
High Deal-Making
Manufacturing
locations
750+
About Venue
Nearly 125
Issued and
pending patents
Nearly $2
billion
Capital
investments over
the past six years
11) Notable Q3 Deals in the Room
Venue® data room: A special report
Valeant Pharmaceuticals
International, Inc. has signed
definitive agreement to
acquire Synergetics USA Inc.
September 2, 2015
Financial Advisor for Target: Raymond
James & Associates, Inc.; William Blair &
Company
Counsel for Target: Armstrong Teasdale LLP
Counsel for Buyer: Skadden Arps Slate
Meagher & Flom LLP
Industry: Medical: Medical equipment &
services
Schlumberger Limited
agrees to acquire Cameron
International Corporation
August 26, 2015
Financial Advisor for Target: Credit Suisse
Counsel for Target: Alston & Bird LLP;
Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP
Resilience Capital
Partners LLC, acquires
Porter’s Group, LLC
September 1, 2015
Target: Porter’s Group, LLC
Financial Advisor for Seller: Stephens Inc.
Private Equity Firm for Buyer:
Resilience Capital Partners LLC
Industry: Industrial products and
services; Industrial equipment and
machinery; Other metal products
Berry Plastics Group, Inc. has
agreed to acquire AVINTIV
Inc. from Blackstone Group L.P.
July 31, 2015
Financial Advisor for Buyer: Barclays;
Credit Suisse
Counsel for Buyer: Bryan Cave LLP
Financial Advisor for Buyer: Goldman
Sachs
Financial Advisor for Seller: Bank of
America Merrill Lynch; Citi
Counsel for Buyer: Baker Botts LLP; Gibson
Dunn & Crutcher LLP; Skadden Arps Slate
Meagher & Flom LLP
Counsel for Seller: Simpson Thacher &
Bartlett LLP
Industry: Energy; Industrial automation;
Industrial products and services
Enterprise Products Partners, L.P.
agrees to acquire EFS Midstream
LLC, from Pioneer Natural Resources Company and Reliance
Holding USA, Inc., a subsidiary
of Reliance Industries Limited
July 8, 2015
Counsel for Buyer: Locke Lord LLP
Counsel for Seller: Vinson & Elkins LLP
Financial Advisor for Seller: Bank of America Merrill
Lynch; Citi
Industry: Automotive; Manufacturing
(other); Medical; Services (other); Telecommunications: Hardware
Time Inc. acquires inVNT
July 7, 2015
Financial Advisor for Target:
Palazzo
Financial Advisor for Buyer: The
Jordan Edmiston Group, Inc.
Industry: Media: Media houses;
Publishing
Counsel for Seller: Latham & Watkins LLP; White &
Case LLP
The Carlyle Group has signed
a definitive agreement to
acquire Blyth Inc.
August 31, 2015
Target: Blyth, Inc.
Financial Advisor for Target: Houlihan Lokey
Counsel for Target: O’Melveny & Myers LLP;
Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
Financial Advisor for Buyer: Threadstone LP
Counsel for Buyer: Latham & Watkins LLP; White &
Case LLP
Private Equity Firm for Buyer: The Carlyle Group
Industry: Consumer: Other; Consumer: Retail; Internet
/ ecommerce; e-retailing; Household products; Manufacture and supply of other consumer products
Rapid7 IPO
July 17, 2015
Issuer: Rapid7
Counsel for Issuer: Cooley LLP
Underwriter(s): Morgan Stanley;
Barclays; Pacific Crest Securities;
William Blair; Raymond James;
Cowen and Company
Counsel for Underwriter: Orrick,
Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
Industry: Computer: Hardware;
Computer software
H.J. Heinz Company merges
with Kraft Foods Group, Inc.
July 2, 2015
Financial Advisor for Target: Centerview Partners
Counsel for Target: Davis Polk &
Wardwell LLP; Sullivan & Cromwell LLP
Financial Advisor for Buyer: Lazard
Counsel for Buyer: Cravath, Swaine &
Moore LLP; Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Industry: Consumer: Foods
Industry: Energy: Exploration and drilling services and
equipment, Oil and gas exploration and production
For more information:
Please contact your
RR Donnelley Sales Rep.
Call 1.888.773.8379
Or visit www.venue.rrd.com
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12) VENUE® Market Spotlight: 2015 Deal-Making Outlook