PAI to acquire Elior's Areas

Francesca Veronesi
21 March 2019

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PAI Partners has entered into exclusive discussions with France-based and Paris Euronext-listed Elior Group for the acquisition of its concession catering activities, grouped under the Areas subsidiary.

Elior has released a statement announcing it has entered exclusive talks with PAI for the sale of its catering activities operated by its division areas.

The sale could fetch €1-1.5bn, according to the latest report by Reuters on the auction, managed by Morgan Stanley and BNP Paribas.

PAI has declined to comment on the deal.

Autogrill (an Italy-based provider of food and beverage services for travellers), Sodexo (a French food services and facilities management company) and PE firms Carlyle and Lone Star were contenders in the auction, according to Reuters.

Founded in 1991 and headquartered in Paris, Elior is an operator in contract catering, concession catering and support services, and has become a benchmark player in the business, industry, education, healthcare and travel markets. The group currently has a market cap of around €2.12bn.

According to its 2018 financials report, Elior generated €6.69bn in revenues last year and posted a €285m adjusted EBITDA.

Areas is Elior's concession catering activities brand and has a presence in 13 countries. The business provides services in rest areas, railway stations, airports. According to its 2018 annual report, Elior's concession catering revenues climbed 3.3% year-on-year to €1.83bn, representing 27% of total consolidated revenues. Its adjusted EBITDA was €105m, which was slightly down from €110m in 2017.