BAKERCORP acquired by UNITED RENTALS

United Rentals agreed on 2 July 2018 to acquire BakerCorp International Holdings at an enterprise value of $715M in cash, in a deal approved unanimously by both boards and expected to close in the third quarter of 2018. BakerCorp generated revenue of $295M and an adjusted EBITDA of in the twelve months to 31 May 2018, an EBITDA margin of , giving an EV/EBITDA multiple of , or 6.6 times once tax benefits and cost synergies are included. The company employed around 950 people serving more than 4,800 customers, with 46 locations in the United States and Canada and 11 in France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, and a fleet of about 24,000 units. The purchase combined BakerCorp’s tank, pump and filtration offering with United Rentals’ Pump Solutions unit, creating a fluid solutions business with pro-forma revenue of around $606 million over the previous twelve months. It also marked United Rentals’ first move into Europe, where BakerCorp earned about 15% of its revenue in the year to 31 January 2018. United Rentals expected around $19 million of direct cost synergies in corporate overhead and shared services, along with cross-selling opportunities and the conversion of re-rented equipment to its own fleet, and saw the acquisition adding to adjusted earnings per share, with return on invested capital exceeding its cost of capital within 36 months of closing.