Objet merger catapults company value
Since merger agreement between 3D printing company and American Stratasys was signed, new concern's market value has increased from $1.4 billion to $3 billion. 'The merger created the leading Israeli company in the field,' says Objet CEO
At the time of the merger, Objet's value was $650 million, entitling it to a 45% stake in the merged company, whereas Stratasys, which was worth $765 million, got 55% of the new concern's shares, the value of which was an estimated $1.4 billion when the agreement was signed in April.
The shareholders anticipate Stratasys' stock to increase by 45%, which means the value of the merged company will climb to $2.9 billion. Objet's proportional value is now $1.3 billion, impressively doubling itself.
Object originally aimed at a $74 million Wall Street IPO on a $500-million market cap, a fact that makes the figures all the more impressive.
"As luck would have it, the stock climbed such that Objet's value hugely increased after we signed the deal," Objet CEO David Reis told Calcalist.
Reis will also head the new concern.
The main winners of the merger are its pre-merger investors, primarily Elchanan Jaglom's Samson Capital, which owns a 27.6% stake in Objet, now worth $359 million; AGM Holdings with a 19.3% stake, now worth $251 million; CEO David Reis, who owns 4.2% of the company, now worth $55 million; and Objet Chairman and President Ilan Levin, who holds a 2.2% stake, now worth $28.1 million.
Reis told Calcalist that the company opted for a merger rather than a Wall Street IPO because "the market is in accelerated growth and the boards of both companies felt that in order to tap into that growth one large concern beats two small entities."
"In order to gain quick access to all of those markets, you need a large company with sales and marketing capabilities," Reis added.
This report was originally published in Hebrew by Calcalist
