NielsjeB schreef op 9 november 2018 17:16:
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PEs pile in for TomTomPublished on 09.11.2018
At least three private equity firms have made unsolicited offers for Dutch navigation giant TomTom, TMT Finance understands. According to sources, CVC Capital Partners, Cinven and Silver Lake have made bids for the entire business. This is alongside the on-going Barclays-led sale process of TomTom’s telematics unit, which is entering the first round of bids.
Sources have previously said that by putting the telematics unit up for sale, the owners of TomTom involuntarily raised the question of a move for the whole business, which is valued at between E2bn to E2.5bn and has a current market cap of E1.8bn. The business is 44.1% owned by its four founders, with 54.1% of its shares floated, while Treasury shares make up the remaining 1.8%.
While TomTom is not believed to be considering any of the offers on the table at the moment, chief executive Harold Goddijn is plotting the company’s next move following once its telematics unit is sold. He didn’t rule out a takeover or forming a partnership with a larger tech firm or car manufacturers. As previously reported, parties that could be interested in a partnership or a takeover of TomTom are Audi, Daimler and BMW-backed internet giant and navigation market leader Here Technologies and US software company Trimble. US tech giant Apple could be another potential buyer, as TomTom already provides data for Apple’s map app. As previously reported, a change in ownership of the firm could present a risk for Apple, which could persuade the tech giant to launch an offer for TomTom to stop a rival from snapping it up instead.
In its field, TomTom has seen its market position slip to third place, behind Here Technologies. Last month, carmaker Renault, a customer of TomTom, formed an alliance with Google, while earlier this month the navigation firm lost a key contract with Volvo, sparking its share price to plummet. At this point last year, TomTom’s shares traded at E9.26 each, the number now stands at E6.41. The company has EBITDA of E163.32m.
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