Insolvent UK retailer The Book People has been unable to find a buyer for the business, and another 82 people at their main warehouse were fired last Friday as a result. Since going to bankruptcy administration, the company has let go over 150 people from a staff of just under 400 — meaning more jobs remain on the line as PricewaterhouseCoopers winds down operations. Separately, the landlord for the seized Book Culture space on Columbus Avenue in NYC tells the Gothamist, “Our intention is to keep that space as a bookstore and we’re working hard to do that. It just […]
Finance
Wiley Buys Tech Training and Placement Firm mthree for $129 Million
Wiley announced Monday that it acquired UK-based education services provider mthree for $129 million (£98 million) in cash on January 1. mthree finds, trains and places technology talent. The company expects to record 2019 sales of over $50 million, which would reflect annual growth of 20 percent. Wiley ceo Brian Napack says in the announcement, “Wiley is committed to bridging the gap between education output and industry need. The acquisition of mthree advances Wiley’s leadership in powering the high-demand, high-potential careers that are fueling the global knowledge economy. CEO Alex Headley and his team have built a great company with […]
OverDrive Sold to KKR by Rakuten
Rakuten has an agreement to sell OverDrive to private equity firm KKR, under the direction of Richard Sarnoff, with the deal expected to close by the end of January. The digital reading and media platform for libraries and schools should pair well with audiobook publisher and platform RBmedia, which KKR bought in 2018. (RBmedia also has a platform that provides digital content to libraries.) The private equity firm bought both OverDrive and RBmedia through its KKR Americas XII Fund. The purchase price was “determined rationally by mutual agreement of both parties” but not disclosed for now. Rakuten said in their […]
Company News: LSC Delisted By NYSE, China’s Publishing Chill, More on Dreamspinner
As anticipated, LSC Communications was kicked off the New York Stock Exchange, which is designed for companies of scale. Trading on the NYSE was suspended at the end of last week, since the company failed to maintain a market cap of at least $15 million for over 30 consecutive trading days. They also failed to maintain a share price of $1 or more. LSC now trades on the OTCQX Best Market, falling another 15 percent in the first forty-five minutes on Monday, down to about 31 cents a share, for a market cap of a little over $10 million. China […]
2019: The Year in Mergers and Finance
The year’s mergers and acquisitions ended with a big deal that really wasn’t a big deal: The announcement of Bertelsmann‘s agreement to acquire the remaining 25 percent of Penguin, for $665 million, pending regulatory approvals. When Penguin and Random House first came together in 2013 — with no money changing hands — it was a merger, of near equals, but over time and now definitively, it became a full acquisition. Penguin Random House itself was an active buyer all year, with a particular emphasis on children’s publishing, and the company has pledged to continuing growing through further acquisitions. One of […]
Bertelsmann to Buy Pearson’s Remaining Stake in Penguin Random House for $675 Million
After resisting a full buyout of Pearson’s minority share in Penguin Random House in 2017, Bertelsmann is exercising their option to buy Pearson’s remaining 25 percent stake in the book publishing joint venture at the soonest opportunity. They will pay $675 million, subject to another round of regulatory approvals, with the deal expected to close in the second quarter of 2020. An analyst at Barclays commented, “The price is in the ballpark of what we expected — a little better.” The latest purchase is based on an enterprise value for PRH of $3.67 billion, up from the $3.55 billion valuation […]