Neuberger Berman and aPriori exit Guala

Alessia Argentieri
17 April 2018

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Neuberger Berman and aPriori Capital Partners have sold Italian bottle sealing company Guala Closure to Space Holding and Peninsula Capital in a reverse merger.

Guala will be acquired by Space4, a special purpose acquisition company launched by Space Holding, and will be listed on the Star segment of the Italian stock exchange via a reverse merger.

The total investment in the transaction will be €600m, which includes the entire €500m raised by Space4 and additional capital provided by Peninsula Capital and the company's management team, led by Marco Giovannini.

After completion of the acquisition, Peninsula Capital will hold a 7% stake in Guala, which will have a market capitalisation of €700m at the end of the listing process, according to Space4.

Following the deal, Guala will benefit from a €170m investment, which will be used to bolster its growth and expansion, and to consolidate its market position.

The deal ends a 10-year holding period for aPriori, which bought a majority stake in Guala in 2008, while Neuberger Berman acquired a minority holding.

Company
Founded in 1954 and based in Alessandria, Guala specialises in bottle sealing and aluminium and plastic closure manufacturing for bottles and containers. The company has a presence in more than 100 countries worldwide and in 2017 generated a turnover of €535m, up 7% on 2016, with an EBITDA margin of 20%.

People
Guala Closures – Marco Giovannini (CEO).

Advisers
Acquirer – Lazard (financial due diligence); BonelliErede (legal); KPMG (corporate finance).
Company – Linklaters (financial due diligence); Freshfields (legal).