Jacobs entered into a definitive agreement to acquire John Wood Group's Nuclear business. The acquisition is a strategic move to strengthen Jacobs' Aerospace, Technology & Nuclear (ATN) line of business by adding deep technical consulting and decommissioning capabilities. The strategic rationale centers on accelerating profitable growth and enhancing Jacobs' credentials as a Tier-1 global nuclear services provider. By integrating Wood Nuclear’s 2,000 employees and its research facilities, Jacobs gains increased access to the U.K., European, and Asian nuclear markets. The transaction is expected to be highly synergistic, with Jacobs targeting £10 million ($12 million) in full run-rate cost synergies. Financially, the deal is expected to be accretive to adjusted EPS by $0.10 to $0.12 in the first year. The acquisition supports Jacobs' sustainability agenda by expanding its role in nuclear clean-up and cleaner energy projects, while maintaining a strong balance sheet with a pro-forma net debt to EBITDA ratio under 1.0x.

JOHN WOOD NUCLEAR, which reported an EBITDA margin of LOGIN in 2019, is valued in this transaction at an EV/EBITDA multiple of LOGIN, representing a LOGIN discount to the 10.9x average currently observed in the Business Services sector.

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