In its latest overseas acquisition, China's Zhongding Sealing Parts Co. Ltd. is buying 100 percent of shares in German injection molder Wegu Holding GmbH for 95 million euros ($107.4 million) in cash.
The payment will be wired by March 31 to DMB 1. Invest GmbH & Co. KG., which owns 90 percent of Wegu's shares, publicly listed Zhongding said. Wegu managing director Horst Zimmerman and Equitrust Beteiligungen GmbH each hold 5 percent.
By the end of September 2014, Kassel-based Wegu's net assets reached 27.2 million euros ($30.8 million), with 39.1 million euros ($44.2 million) of total assets and 11.9 million euros ($13.4 million)of total liabilities, Zhongding revealed in a Feb 11 announcement.
For the fiscal year of 2013, Wegu reported 48.5 million euros ($54.8 million) in sales, 9.8 million euros ($11 million) of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), and 5.8 million euros ($6.5 million) of net profit. Preliminary financial number for the first nine months of 2014 show sales of 40 million euros ($45.2 million), EBITDA of 9.1 million euros ($10.3 million), and net profit of 6.3 million euros ($7.1 million).
Wegu, founded in 1949, specializes in rubber and plastic processing for vibration control and acoustics for the auto industry. Serving premium global brands like BMW, Daimler, Audi and Land Rover, the company operates production facilities in Germany, Canada and Slovakia.
Products that use thermoplastics include airflow extractors (polypropylene and thermoplastic elastomers), steering column seals (nylon, TPE and polyurethane foam), and passenger compartment components such as dashboard mounting parts, steering column covers, speaker grills, crash-relevant parts and center consoles, as well as mud flaps.
In addition to injection molding, Wegu also does compression molding.
Zhongding, based in Ningguo, China, said it expects the deal to advance its technologies in automotive noise reduction systems, especially in electric vehicles; help it enter the supply chain for premium brand automakers; develop modular production and supply capabilities; and boost its product quality, production efficiency and consequently profitability.
“Leveraging Wegu's state-of-art production as well as its brand equity,” Zhongding hopes to “learn and innovate” and break Western firms' “long-term monopoly” in the high-end automotive vibration control field. It aims to grow market share by targeting both imported parts to China as well as export.
The deal is pending Chinese government approval.
With a long history of overseas buying, Zhongding most recently became the majority owner of German automotive sealing specialist Kaco GmbH + Co. KG in July 2014.