Carlyle acquires Meopta

The Rausnitz family will retain a minority stake, according to a press release.

Equity for the investment will be provided by the Carlyle Europe Partners platform and the Carlyle Europe Technology Partners platform, according to a statement.

Carlyle Europe Partners V held a final close on EUR 6.4bn in October 2019. The strategy typically invests in companies with enterprise values in excess of EUR 200m, according to Unquote Data. Carlyle Europe Technology Partners IV (CETP IV) held a final close on EUR 1.4bn in January 2019.

Unquote sister publication Mergermarket reported in April that Carlyle was among the bidders for the Goldman Sachs and Deloitte-run sale process.

The business generated CZK 3.7bn (EUR 151m) revenue and profit of CZK 670m (EUR 282m) in 2021, as reported.

Carlyle will support Meopta's growth through an increased focus on R&D, capitalizing on attractive opportunities in a diverse range of end markets, expanding its international presence through the creation of a direct sales network, as well as improving its operations, according to the statement.

The company is well-positioned to benefit from strong secular tailwinds and increasing demand for its specialist products across its end markets, it said. The sponsor seeks to continue its journey to become a globally leading optics systems provider, it added.

The GP has recently invested in the sector with the acquisition of Czech electron microscopes and high-tech scientific instruments manufacturer Tescan Orsay, which it acquired in December 2022 via Carlyle Europe Technology Partners IV.

The sponsor's Carlyle Europe Partners VI (CEP VI) fund was filed with the Luxembourg Registry in January 2023, while Carlyle Europe Technology Partners V was filed with the Luxembourg Registry in October 2021.

Company
Founded in 1933 and headquartered in Prerov, Czech Republic, Meopta is a developer and manufacturer of specialized industrial and handheld optical, opto-mechanical and opto-electronic products. Its operations, all of which are based at its Prerov site, span the design, development and production of optical components, high-precision mechanical parts and assemblies, clean room sub-system assembly and metrology, including the measurement and testing of component and sub-system attributes. Meopta has more than 1,700 employees, including more than 300 engineers.

People
Carlyle − Friedel Drees (managing director on the Europe Partners investment advisory team), Vladimir Lasocki (managing director and co-Head of the Europe Technology Partners investment advisory team).
Meopta − Gerald Rausnitz (controlling shareholder), Alena Moore (CEO).

Advisers
Equity − Goldman Sachs, Deloitte (corporate finance); Dentons (legal).

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