American Standard Companies Inc. announced that
it has signed a definitive agreement to sell the company’s worldwide Bath and
Kitchen products business to funds advised by Bain Capital Partners, LLC, a
leading global private investment firm, for $1.755 billion in cash.
American Standard Companies
Inc.announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to sell the company’s
worldwide Bath and Kitchen products business to funds advised byBain Capital Partners, LLC, a leading global private
investment firm, for $1.755 billion in cash.
Upon
completion of the sale, Bain Capital will acquire all of American Standard's
Bath and Kitchen business with 2006 annual sales of $2.4 billion, 26,000
employees and 54 production facilities in 23 countries worldwide. The business
manufactures and markets industry-leading products under brand names such as
American Standard®, Ideal Standard®, Armitage Shanks®, Porcher®, Jado®,
Ceramica Dolomite® and Vidima®.
Bain
Capital is a global private investment firm based in Boston that manages
several pools of capital, including private equity, high-yield assets,
mezzanine capital and public equity with approximately $50 billion in assets
under management. The company was recently involved in the purchase of The Home
Depot’s HD Supply unit, as part of a purchasing group that included The
Carlyle Group and Clayton, Dubilier & Rice Inc.
The
sale closing is expected to occur early in the fourth quarter. The company
intends to use proceeds of the sale primarily to repurchase common stock and
reduce debt to keep the company at investment-grade standards. The sale is
subject to normal regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.
Shareholder approval is not required. The buyer has secured firm financing
commitments.
On
Feb. 1, 2007, American Standard announced plans to separate its three
businesses by selling Bath and Kitchen, spinning off Vehicle Control Systems
and retaining its largest business, Air Conditioning Systems and Services. This
announcement is the final step needed for completion of those plans following
the spinoff of Vehicle Control Systems as an independent publicly traded
company to be known as WABCO, which is scheduled for July 31 at 11:59 p.m. EDT.
In March, the company sold Venesta Washroom Systems, which was part of Bath and
Kitchen. Combined with Venesta, proceeds for the sale of Bath and Kitchen total
$1.92 billion.
Following
the spinoff and the sale, American Standard Companies will change its name to
Trane. Trane is the flagship brand of its global Air Conditioning Systems and
Services business, which last year generated sales of $6.8 billion. Trane will
retain the American Standard brand name for its heating, ventilating and air
conditioning (HVAC) and related products, while the newly formed Bath and
Kitchen business will retain the name for its markets.
“This
is a major milestone in our plan to separate American Standard into three
focused, better understood companies,” said Fred Poses, American Standard
chairman and CEO. “We believe that Bain Capital's all-cash offer provides
excellent value for our shareowners. Bath and Kitchen is a global market
leader, with size, global reach and organizational talent. It has a rich
history and a great future for its customers, employees and new owners.”
“This
is a market-leading global company with a wonderful heritage, a strong
portfolio of brands, deep customer relationships and an experienced management
team,” said Steve Barnes, a managing director at Bain Capital based in Boston.
“We
look forward to supporting the management team and dedicated employees in
realizing the company's full potential through continued operational
improvements, further enhancing and leveraging its strong family of brands, and
accelerating growth,” added Walid Sarkis, a London-based managing director at
Bain Capital.
American
Standard Companies is completing plans to spin off WABCO. Regular trading of
WABCO's common stock (WBC) is set to begin Aug. 1 on the New York Stock Exchange.
It is currently traded on a “when issued” basis.
American Standard’s financial advisor for the Bath and
Kitchen sale is Lazard. Its legal counsel is Skadden Arps. For Bain Capital,
Bank of America, N.A. and Credit Suisse provided financing, Lehman Brothers
acted as financial advisors, Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal counsel,
and PricewaterhouseCoopers provided transaction advisory services.