Sunday, September 7, 2014

Industry Swims Upstream – August 2014 M&A Activity


Mailing and fulfillment service companies are aggressively moving upstream into printing, graphic design and data management services. Streamworks, in Arden Hills, Minnesota, jumped up the value ladder and acquired Imagewërks Marketing, a design and production boutique, also located in Arden Hills. The acquired company had itself evolved over three decades from a printing company into a “comprehensive marketing company.” The buyer, Streamworks, also has been a work-in-progress, having been formed just last year when Action, a direct mail and fulfillment company, joined with Expedite Direct Mail & Fulfillment, a provider of printing and direct mail services. The newly combined entities will still provide printing services, and promote ink-on-paper as an effective communication channel; print services are subsumed under the broad message that the company provides “integrated marketing communications.”

Com-Pak Services, a Moorestown, New Jersey provider of mailing services, has teamed up with EU Services in Rockville, Maryland under the ownership of private equity fund Maidstone Capital. The two operating companies, now under combined management, will provide single-source direct marketing services. With this addition to the Maidstone portfolio, Com-Pak, formerly at the tail-end of the direct mail process, moves upstream into the printing segment with sheetfed and web press capability, digital printing and data processing. EU Services had also moved up-market over time, morphing from an envelope printing company into a data-driven digital printing company.  

The YGS Group, a York, Pennsylvania company offering marketing, publishing and printing services, expanded to the west coast with its acquisition of Print Management, located in the Seattle metro area.* The YGS Group has developed a suite of diversified and integrated services that includes design, copywriting, social media implementation, event management and print advertising sales. The company has announced plans to roll out these services to its new location, in addition to the acquired printing and fulfillment capabilities.

Performance Printing in Dallas, Texas enhanced its Performance POP division with the acquisition of Miramar Designs, a Fort Worth company that specializes in the design of in-store displays. Offering a variety of specialized printing techniques, including lenticular printing, personalized plastic card printing as well as point-of-purchase displays, the company now offers creative design services.

Rock-Tenn, a $9.8 billion company which produces containerboard and paperboard in its own mills, is also a major printing company in the packaging and display segments. RockTenn acquired the AGI In-Store company from American Greetings, producer of greeting cards. Located in Forest City, North Carolina, the acquisition brings additional design capabilities to RockTenn, along with manufacturing capabilities that include metal, wood and plastic fabrication. The operation has been bolted onto the company’s impressive vertically integrated merchandizing display operations. This is RockTenn’s second acquisition this year in the merchandizing display segment, following their acquisition in January of NPG in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

The churn and turbulence in the newspaper business that we reported on last month continued in August. The Tribune Company completed its spinoff of its newspaper publishing business. Gannett made its own split official in August, and announced that it will be joining virtually all the major multi-media companies as they jettison their print-centric business units. In the minor leagues, however, the opposite is true as acquisitions of regional and community newspapers continued unabated. Metro US, a daily paper in Philadelphia, acquired City Paper, a weekly paper that serves the same market. Adams Publishing Group, headquartered in Minneapolis, MN, continued its roll-up of community newspapers with the acquisition of Chronotype Publishing in Rice Lake, Wisconsin. (See The Target Report for July and March for Adam’s prior transactions this year). In stark contrast to the major metro newspapers, Adams is adding printed products to its holdings of radio stations, magazines, outdoor advertising and commercial printing.

As a sign of the improving economy and reported stabilization of the printing industry, for the first time in the three years that I have been publishing The Target Report, my research did not turn up any bankruptcies filed during the prior month in the printing, packaging, paper or related industries.


* Mark Hahn, the author of the Target Report and Senior Vice President of the NAPL Business Advisory Group, served as advisor to the seller in this transaction.


2014 August - Mergers and Acquisitions in the Printing, Packaging, Paper & Related Industries  

Deal Party #1
(Surviving Entity)
Pre-Deal
Revenues
($Mil )


Party #1 Address


Deal Party #2
Pre-Deal
Revenues
($Mil )


Party #2 Address
Date
Deal
Public
Deal
Value
($Mil)

Deal Structure
(Intermediary)


Notes

Press
Releases
Nanotech Security $2.1 Burnaby, BC Fortress Optical Features
(sub. Fortress Paper)
$2.3 Thruso, QC 8/26/14 $17.5 Acquisition Banknote security threads Link
Mark Andy Mngt Team No Data Chesterfield, MO Mark Andy
(American Industrial Partners)
No Data Chesterfield, MO 8/22/14 No Data Acquisition Flexo presses Link
YGS Group No Data York, PA Print Management No Data Tukwila, WA 8/21/14 No Data Acquisition
(NAPL, Advisory Group)
Commercial printing Link
Coveris $2,800 Chicago, IL Learoyd Packaging  $33.0 Burnley, UK 8/21/14 No Data Acquisition Flexographic printing Link
RockTenn $9,770 Norcross, GA A.G. Industries
(sub. American Greetings)
No Data Forest City, NC 8/21/14 No Data Acquisition POP & store displays Link
Streamworks No Data Arden Hills, MN Imagewërks Marketing No Data Arden Hills, MN 8/20/14 No Data Acquisition Marketing agency Link
Penske Media No Data Los Angeles, CA Fairchild Fashion Media
(Sub. Condé Nast)
No Data New York, NY 8/14/14 $100.0 Acquisition B-to-B Publications Link
Metro US No Data Philadelphia, PA City Paper No Data Philadelphia, PA 8/13/14 No Data Acquisition Weekly newspaper Link
Proforma 3rd Degree No Data Akron, OH Hyde Brothers Printing Co No Data Marietta, OH 8/13/14 No Data Acquisition Commercial printing Link
Keller Bros. & Miller No Data Buffalo, NY Petit Printing No Data Riverside, NY 8/8/14 No Data Acquisition Commercial printing Link
Charter Oak Equity No Data Westport, CT Seaboard Folding Box No Data Fitchburg MA 8/6/14 No Data Acquisition Folding cartons Link
Gannett $5,480 McLean, VA Publishing businesses No Data McLean, VA 8/5/14 No Data Spin-off National & local newspapers Link
Maidstone Capital No Data Westport, CT EU Services No Data Rockville, MD 8/5/14 No Data Acquisition Direct mail & printing Link
Vomela Specialty Company $230.0 St. Paul, MN Master Print No Data Newington, VA 8/4/14 No Data Acquisition Commercial printing Link
Gill Studios
(Re-branded Gill Bebco)
No Data Lenaxa, KS Barton Nelson No Data Kansas City, MO 8/4/14 No Data Acquisition Printed promotional products Link
Tribune Company $3,210 Chicago, IL Tribune Publishing No Data Chicago, IL 8/4/14 $528.0 Spin-off Metro newspapers Link
Adams Publishing Group No Data Minneapolis, MN Chronotype Publishing Co No Data Rice Lake, WI 8/1/14 No Data Acquisition Community newspapers Link
Perfomance POP No Data Dallas, TX Miramar Designs No Data Fort Worth, TX 8/1/14 No Data Acquisition Retail display design Link


2014 August - Bankruptcy Filings in the Printing, Packaging, Paper & Related Industries



Filing Party

Date
Case
Filed
Pre-Petition
Revenues
($Mil )



Case #



Filing Party Address



Circuit



Region & City



Judge



Attorney for Debtor



Notes
Chapter 11 Filings:
No Chapter 11 Filings Found this Month --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---
Chapter 7 Filings:
No Chapter 7 Filings Found this Month --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---


2014 August - Non-Bankruptcy Closures in the Printing, Packaging, Paper & Related Industries



Closed Company / Facility

Date of Closure
Pre-Closure
Revenues
($Mil )



Closing Address
Related Party Related Party
Address
Date Closure Public


Notes

Press
Releases
FIS - Printing & mailing facility Mar-15 No Data Brown Deer, WI Fidelity National Info Services Jacksonville, FL 8/28/14 Consolidating operations Link
FutureMark Alsip Sep-14 No Data Alsip, IL FutureMark Paper Group Westport, CT 8/21/14 Coated recycled paper mill Link
Old Town Fuel & Fiber 8/13/14 No Data Old Town, ME Patriarch Partners New York, NY 8/14/14 Pulp mill Link
Ennis - Knoxville Facility Sep-14 No Data Knoxville, TN Mutual Graphics Knoxville, TN 8/12/14 Consolidation into acquired plant Link