Harvey Nash to be Acquired by Investor Group in $100 Million-Plus Deal

August 8, 2018 – Acquisitions continue to make big news in the executive search industry. The Power of Talent Ltd (Bidco), an entity owned and controlled by investment funds managed by DBAY Advisors, has made a £98.7 million bid to acquire London-based recruitment firm Harvey Nash. The deal must now be approved by 75 percent of the firm’s shareholders to be finalized.

DBAY already owns 26.1 percent of Harvey Nash after taking a significant stake in the group last year. DBAY said Harvey Nash is better suited for a private company environment, which would eliminate regulatory burdens and constraints and costs of maintaining a public listing.

Under terms of the deal, Harvey Nash shareholders will receive 130 pence in cash for each share (a 17 percent premium on the closing price yesterday) and one interim dividend of up to 1.75 pence per share, the company said. According to sources, the recruiting firm said the offer is in the best interests of its shareholders, staff and clients. DBAY offers stability and has stated it intends to support employees and invest in the business, Harvey Nash said.

Acquisition Strategy

“Harvey Nash’s acquisition strategy and successful transformation program has resulted in significant shareholder value being created over the past two years,” said Julie Baddeley, chairman of Harvey Nash. “While the independent Harvey Nash directors believe Harvey Nash would have a strong future as an independent listed company, they consider that the offer, which is wholly in cash, represents attractive value and is in the best interests of Harvey Nash shareholders, staff and clients.”

David Morrison, investment director of DBAY, said his firm was pleased to have reached agreement with the Independent Harvey Nash directors. “We know the Harvey Nash business well having been significant investors since February 2017 and are delighted to have the opportunity to partner with the Harvey Nash management team and employees to further strengthen its leading position in the specialist technology recruitment and outsourcing markets,” he said.

Last year, Harvey Nash posted revenue of £889.3 million. Following news of the deal, Harvey Nash shares traded at £130.05, up 16 percent on the day and 1.48 percent below its 52-week high of 132.00, set last month. Based on its current share price the company has a market value of £81.90 million.

With staff in more than 40 offices across Europe, Asia and the U.S., Harvey Nash provides executive search & leadership services, professional recruitment and outsourcing services to an array of industries.

Acquisitions

A number of private equity, staffing and advisory companies have acquired recruiting firms in recent months. Here’s a sampling from the Hunt Scanlon Media Archives:

Executive search firm Vaco was recently acquired by Stamford, Conn-based private equity firm Olympus Partners. Founded in 2002 by Jerry Bostelman, Jay Hollomon, and Brian Waller, Vaco partnered with its first private equity partner, Quad-C Management, three years ago. 

Recruitment firm CDI Corp. has agreed to be acquired by AE Industrial Partners, a private equity investor specializing in aerospace, power generation and specialty industrial companies. AEI will acquire all of the outstanding shares of the company’s stock for $8.25 per share in an all-cash offer and follow-on merger.

 TechnoPro Holdings acquired Tokyo-based Boyd & Moore Executive Search. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Boyd & Moore is a global executive recruitment firm operating primarily in the technology sector, serving multinational clients. With $1 billion in revenue and more than 13,000 engineers, TechnoPro is Japan’s largest engineering staffing outfit.

Simione Healthcare Consultants acquired Healthcare Concepts Inc., a Memphis-based executive recruitment firm that specializes in the home care and hospice industry. The transaction combines the Healthcare Concepts team with Exact Recruiting, which was acquired by Simione in April and is dedicated to home care, hospice, palliative care and other community-based services.

Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor; and Andrew W. Mitchell, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media

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