Renatus Weekly M&A & Company Performance Private Equity Newsletter 09/10/2022

Deal Details: DPS has been acquired by Arcadis in a deal reported to be worth c. €232m. The deal is subject to competition authority approval.

DPS is an engineering, consulting, and construction management company that provides services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, novel therapy, medical technologies, and semiconductor manufacturing industries globally. The business was founded in 1974 and is headquartered in Dublin. It employs over 2,850 staff globally and is led by its CEO Frank Keogh. The business reported an FY20 turnover of c. €395.8m which converted to an EBITDA of c. €15.4m. The business is majority owned by Frank Keogh, Eddie Kent, Patrick McIntyre and others.

Arcadis is a design and consultancy organisation for natural and built assets. It offers design, consultancy, engineering, project, and management services to various sectors. The business was founded in 1888 and is headquartered in Amsterdam. Peter Oosterveer has led the business as Chief Executive since 2018. In FY21, the business had a turnover of c. €3.4bn, which converted to an EBITDA of c. €278.0m.

Advisers:
DPS:
Corporate Finance: An EY team led by Ronan Murray and John Higgins with Peter Neville and Eanna Brennan.
Tax: EY including John Kennelly, Frank O’Neill and Chloe Barrett.
Legal: An RDJ team including Gillian Keating, Sean O’Reilly, Maria Walsh, Tadhg O’Scanaill, Fernanda Camera (Corporate & Commercial), Mark Barrett, John Cuddigan, Mark Ludlow (Tax), Brendan Cunningham (Finance), David McCarroll (Employment).

Arcadis:
Legal: Arthur Cox led by Kate Hogan and Stephen Ranalow.
Tax: Deloitte led by David Shanahan.

Renatus Comment: Since its establishment in 1974, DPS Group has become a global player servicing critical sectors which have remained resilient in times of economic uncertainty, particularly recently. Irish companies who have successfully broken into the US and taken share is a short list. DPS is rightfully part of that list having opened its first US facility in 2011, thereafter expanding US operations to over 900 staff in eight offices, and earlier this month announcing further expansion of its US headquarters.

Ireland has produced some amazing global engineering companies like Mercury Engineering, KN Group, PM Group, and H&MV. DPS has made its own significant contribution to this ecosystem.

Source: Arcadis Press Release

Deal Details: SME private equity investor Foresight Group has completed its first investment in Ireland, backing the MBO of etag, a construction materials distribution business with operations in Ireland and the UK. Foresight is reported to have made an €8.2m investment into the business, and is partnering with MD Shirley Bowman and Sales Director Shaun Bonner to support its future growth.

Founded in Co. Meath in 2004, etag serves large multi-national construction companies, SME contractors and local builders, offering over 10,000 products, including a range of own-branded products. The business expanded into the UK in 2011 and operates from two warehouse facilities in Dublin and East London, employing 89 staff. In FY21 the Irish business had a turnover of c. €16.8m, which converted to an EBITDA of c. €916.3k and the UK business had a turnover of c. £15.1m, which converted to an EBITDA of c £261.5k.

It is reported that Foresight’s investment will support etag’s management team with its growth plans to expand its geographical presence across the island of Ireland and the UK, bring more own-brand products to the market and develop an e-Commerce channel. Foresight will also support etag’s goal to be a market leader in sustainable building materials by expanding its range of environmentally friendly and sustainable building products.

Advisers:
Foresight Group:
Legal: Shoosmiths (UK legals), McCann Fitzgerald (ROI legals) and LK Shields (merger clearance).
Financial due diligence and tax due diligence: HNH.
Commercial due diligence: Whitecap Consulting.

etag:
Financial: EY team of Cary Wilson, Jonny Forde & Martin Treacy.
Legal: A&L Goodbody team of Peter Stafford & Mark Stockdale.

Renatus Comment: This is Foresight’s first investment in Ireland and comes from the recently launched Irish fund led by Barclay Clibborn and Philip Gardiner. Foresight’s Irish PE fund is reported to have a strong focus on sustainability and is to partner with both traditional SMEs and green businesses to support Ireland’s transition to a low-carbon economy.

While we feel like we are potentially in a situation similar to 2008, suppliers to the building trade such as this are far less exposed than previously. The level of construction activity in commercial, industrial and residential has not been exceptional in recent years and we are unlikely to experience the massive drops seen in 2008 which saw residential construction activity decline by c. 51% in the first 6 months of 2008. The volumes in the years ahead should not be too different from the long-run average suggesting no huge exposure to an investment such as this.

Source: Business Post

Deal Details: Uniphar PLC has acquired Inspired Health Limited for an undisclosed sum.

Uniphar Group is an international healthcare services business with over 200 customers in the pharmaceutical and MedTech industries. Uniphar was established following a merger between United Pharmacies Co-Op and Allied Pharmaceutical Distributors in 1994. The business is headquartered in Dublin and was listed on Euronext Dublin and the London Stock Exchange in 2019. In FY21 the business reported turnover of c. €1.9bn, which converted to an EBITDA of c. €68.2m. The business has a workforce of over 2,900 staff dispersed throughout Ireland, the UK, Benelux, Nordics, Germany, Switzerland, and the USA.

Inspired Health is a Boston-based consultancy business that provides insights and intelligence to customers in the life science industries. It was established in 2017 by Andrew Wilson. The business did not report turnover or EBITDA information. It will now form part of Uniphar’s commercial and clinical division.

Advisers:
Uniphar:
None mentioned.

Inspired Health:
Corporate Finance: Green Square Partners.

Renatus Comment: This acquisition comes just two weeks after Uniphar’s acquisition of McCauley Pharmacy Group. The McCauley acquisition was the latest installment of Uniphar’s consolidation in the Irish market across the Pharma and MedTech value chains. In recent years Uniphar has been moving toward replicating this strategy in Europe and the US with this latest acquisition being US-based. Other US-based firms Uniphar has acquired in recent years include Diligent Health Solutions, BESTMSLs, and RRD International.

Uniphar’s shares began trading at €1.15 when it conducted an IPO in 2019. At the close of trading on Friday on the Euronext, the share price was €3.02. The public markets appear to be reacting favourably to Uniphar’s strategy and performance.

Source: Irish Times

Deal Details: Origin Enterprises has acquired Keystone Environmental for an undisclosed amount.

Origin Enterprises plc is a focused agri-services group providing specialist on-farm agronomy services and the supply of crop technologies and inputs. The business is based in Dublin and is listed on both the ESM and AIM markets of the Irish and London Stock Exchanges. The business repported FY22 revenue of c. €2.3bn. Management noted that the revenue growth from c. €1.7bn the previous year was driven by the exceptionally high fertiliser raw material pricing environment offset by reduced fertiliser demand and strong growth in both crop protection and seed volumes.

Keystone Environmental is a UK-based ecological advice and technical solutions provider. Turnover or EBITDA was not reported for the business. The business was owned by Oliver and Sharon Tucker.

Advisers:
Origin Enterprises:
Corporate Finance: Davy led by Anthony Farrell.
Corporate Broking: Goodbody led by Joe Gill.
Other: Numis led by Stuart Skinner,
FTI Consulting led by Jonathan Neilan.

Keystone Environmental:
None mentioned.

Renatus Comment: This investment is part of a strategy to focus on sustainable and efficient land use which has become ever more critical in a time when reduced emissions and energy usage are in such focus and will likely continue to be.

The acquisition of Keystone forms part of what appears to have been a very positive month for Origin Enterprises having recently reported strong financial results. However, Origin Enterprises’ share price has not moved positively as a result with the share price (LON: OGN) decreasing by c. 11% over the past month. This is however caveated by the wider market moving negatively for this period.

Source: Irish Independent 

Deal Details: Pemroke Insurances Limited has been acquired by Aston Lark. Deal details have not been disclosed.

Pembroke Insurances is a leading independent business and commercial insurance brokerage firm. It was established in 2007 by Graham Weir and John McGuire. In FY21 it reported turnover of c. €1.5m which converted to EBITDA of c. €0.1m. The business was owned by John McGuire, Graham Weir and Paul Murphy.

Aston Lark is a UK-based insurance broker that was sold by Goldman Sachs to Howden for c. €1.4bn last year. The business is led by CEO Robert Kennedy. This week Aston Lark commented on its 2021 financials showing 75% growth in revenue, growing to £160.1m, and 82% growth in EBITDA (nominal valued not disclosed). Much of the growth was driven by acquisitions. It made a total of 32 acquisitions in 2021 across retail broking, employee benefits, Ireland and the UK. It has completed a further 7 so far in 2022. There was also organic growth in commission and fees of 11% and 9% like-for-like growth in EBITDA.

Advisers: None mentioned.

Renatus Comment: Aston Lark Ireland continues to be an extremely active acquirer in the insurance broker industry, having acquired Sparrow Insurance in August and Gateway Insurance in September.

The consolidation of the Irish insurance industry has been playing out for a number of years now. Three acquisitions by Aston Lark in the past three months suggests that the pace of consolidation in the industry shows no signs of slowing down.

Our colleague Kyle Barry wrote about the trend in out blog earlier this year, which you can read here.

Source: Aston Lark Press Release 

Deal Details: Kinzen has been acquired by Spotify. Deal consideration has not been disclosed.

Kinzen provides technology that helps protect communities from harmful content and hate speech. The business is based in Dublin and was founded in 2007 by Mark Little, Áine Kerr, and Paul Watson who owned the business alongside other individuals and investors. Kinzen established its partnership with Spotify in 2020, and this acquisition furthers the strategic alliance between these companies. Turnover or EBITDA was not reported for the business.

Spotify is a Swedish audio streaming service founded in 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. The business reported an FY21 turnover of c. €9.7bn, which converted to an EBITDA of c. €155.0m. Significant shareholders in the business includes Baillie Gifford & Co, T. Rowe, Morgan Stanley and Vanguard.

Advisers:
​​​​​​Spotify:
None mentioned.

Kinzen:
Legal: Mason Hayes & Curran LLP.

Renatus Comment: This deal marks another successful exit for Mark Little. Mark previously founded Storyful, a social media news agency. In December 2013 he sold the business to Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp for a reported €18m and has clearly been busy growing Kinzen since.

The acquisition of content moderation businesses has been a theme recently among large technology businesses. In addition to Spotify’s acquisition of Kinzen, Reddit announced that they will be acquiring Oterlu, a Swedish moderation start-up this week.

The issue of identifying and removing misinformation and hateful speech has become a necessity for businesses with user-generated content amid increasing public and regulatory scrutiny. It is great to see an Irish business at the forefront of the solutions working to mitigate this issue.

Source: Spotify Press Release 

Deal Details: TotalEnergies has acquired a c. 75% stake in Simply Blue Energy’s 1GW Aurora floating wind project. Deal consideration has not been disclosed.

Simply Blue Energy is an Irish developer of floating offshore energy projects headquartered in Cork. Its principal shareholder is Octopus Renewables and it is led by CEO Sam Roch-Perks.

TotalEnergies is a French oil and gas company, publically listed on the Euronext in Paris. In FY21 it recorded revenues of c. €156.2bn which converted to an EBITDA of €31.5bn.

Advisers: None mentioned.

Renatus Comment: The source of our energy today and where we go from here is a national topic due to recent price increases and the threat of availability.

Wind and solar are often pointed to as potential alternatives to our reliance on non-renewable sources. However, energy generation from these sources is erratic and it remains to be seen whether these can be relied upon as our primary sources of energy.

EirGrid produce a very insightful dashboard which shows just how erratic wind generation can be: EirGrid Dashboard

Source: Capital IQ

Deal Details: Kavanagh Group is to acquire Clarkes Barna Supervalu. Deal consideration was not disclosed and the deal is subject to CCPC approval.

Kavanagh Group operates 21 retail businesses throughout Ireland and the UK under various brands including SuperValu, Centra, and Budgens. It also operates the Wyatt Hotel in Westport. In FY19, the business reported a turnover of c. €83.1m which converted to EBITDA of c. €4.0m. The business employs c. 650 staff and is led by MD Noel Kavanagh Jr.

Clarkes Barna SuperValu is a family business that operates a single SuperValu supermarket in Barna Co. Galway. It does not report turnover or EBITDA information and was owned by the Clarke family (Theresa, Caroline, Simone, Jason, and Judith). The business employed c. 81 staff throughout 2020.

Advisers: None mentioned

Renatus Comment: According to a Kantar report in September 2022, Dunnes Stores was the leading supermarket chain in Ireland with a reported 22.3% of the take home consumer spend. There was little to separate the “big 3” as SuperValu was third with 21.4% behind Tesco in 2nd with 21.9%. Lidl had 13.2% and Aldi had 12.7%.

Supermarkets were one of the few businesses to remain resilient or even benefit from the Covid period with consumers left with little alternative options. Today, grocery inflation has hit 11%, according to Kantar, and the consumer is facing rising costs elsewhere in the form of utility price hikes, among others.

With the general public facing cost increases across the board, they will likely look to lower the cost of their weekly trolley. It will be interesting to see how the market share of the main supermarkets trend in light of this.

Source: CCPC

Deal Details: Iconic Media Group has acquired The Mayo News. Deal details have not been disclosed and the deal is subject to regulatory approval.

Iconic Media Group is an Irish newspaper and media company that publishes over 20 regional newspapers including the Limerick Leader, Kilkenny People and Donegal Democrat. The business is based in Kildare. It has also built an online presence in recent years. The business is owned by Mediaforce, which is majority owned by Malcom Denmark. Iconic Media does not publish turnover or EBITDA information.

The Mayo News is a Westport based local newspaper that was established in 1892. Joseph Berry owned and ran the business from the late 80’s until his passing in 2004, when his son Dermot Berry took over. The business does not publish turnover or EBITDA information.

Advisers: None mentioned

Renatus Comment: The government recently announced a 0% VAT rate on newspapers from the 1st of January 2023. In addition to removing the information tax, this action will provide a welcome financial boost to a sector that is facing cost constraints, diminishing print circulation, and challenges in increasing digital revenues.

The Iconic Group have made multiple previous acquisitions including Johnston Press and River Media while making significant progress with online publications. This acquisition further reduces the already dwindling number of independently run newspapers in the Irish market. This is to be expected in industries in the later stages of their industry lifecycle, which traditional newspapers appear to be.

Source: Mayo News Press Release 

Deal Details: The Eglantine Inn has been acquired by The Clover Group for an undisclosed sum.

The Clover Group expects to create 30 new jobs and will invest c. £500k into refitting the premises.

The Eglantine Inn is a bar based in Belfast that was put on the market two years ago by previous owners, Wine Inns Limited. Wine Inns Limited owned eight other bars and restaurants throughout Northern Ireland. Turnover or EBITDA information was not available for the Eglantine Inn but previous owner, Wine Inns reported FY20 revenue of c. £13.4m and EBITDA of c. £800k. It is owned by Patrick Hunt, Robert Davis, James Hunt, Michael Hunt, Patrick Hunt, and Rachael McGranaghan.

The Clover Group is a hospitality group based in Belfast. It was founded in 2017 and currently operates eight other bars in Belfast. The business did not report turnover or EBITDA information and is owned by Jim Conlon, Mark Beirne, Paul Langsford, and Colin Dalley.

Advisers:
Clover Group:
Legal: McMahon McKay led by Richard McLaughlin.
Accounting: Maneely McCann Chartered Accountants.
Corporate Finance: Lecale Corporate Finance led by Ciaran Fitzpatrick.

Eglantine Inn:
None mentioned.

Renatus Comment: The hospitality sector has battled consistent challenges over the last two years. Significant Government supports were put in place to keep the sector afloat as it battled repeated Covid-related closures. Now, supply chain and energy inflation are the latest headwinds hitting this sector.

Mitchells & Butler, the UK’s largest listed pub group, this week warned that rising energy costs will continue to squeeze profit margins in the sector. This news comes after JD Wetherspoons, which operates almost 900 pubs in the UK & Ireland, announcing that it was putting 32 of its pubs up for sale.

After over two years of battling significant challenges facing the sector, It will be interesting to see if hospitality businesses, particularly smaller operators, can continue to battle through.

Source: Belfast Telegraph

Deal Details: Independent Irish Health Foods has been acquired by Bellingham Capital. Deal consideration is reported to have been between €10 and €15m.

Independent Irish Health Foods (IIHF) is a distributor and wholesaler of health foods and related products including vegetarian, vegan, organic, free-from, and fair trade brands including its own brand, True Natural Goodness. The business was founded by Richard Wilkins and Henry Bartlett in 2008. It is headquartered in Cork and employs 89 people. In FY21 it had a turnover of c. €25.2m, which converted to an EBITDA of c. €1.6m. The business is owned by Henry Bartlett, Richard Wilkins, Colin Kiely, Evergreen Health Foods Limited, and Noreen Moynihan.

Bellingham Capital is an Irish investment firm that focuses on sustainable food businesses. The business was established by Mark Goodman in 2021 with a primary focus on the agribusiness, food industry and renewable projects across Ireland and the UK.

Advisers:
Bellingham Capital:
None mentioned.

Independent Irish Health Foods:
Corporate Finance: Key Capital.

Renatus Comment: This acquisition is the second for Bellingham Capital following last year’s acquisition of National Organic products which trades as Bunalun. Bunalun is similar to Independent Irish Health Foods in the sense that they both specialise in healthy and ‘free from’ alternatives to traditional foods.

Irish people have become increasingly health-conscious in decisions around food. From a consumer perspective, according to a study published by Bord Bia, Ireland ranks 3rd worldwide in the number of vegans per capita. At a State level, Ireland’s organically farmed area is currently 1.6% of our total agricultural area. Under the government’s Food Vision 2030 strategy, the aim is to increase this area to 7.5% by 2030.

Both Bunalun and IIHF would appear to be positively exposed to these trends.

Source: Irish Times 

Deal Details: Galway-based, One Touch Health has secured investment from UK private equity firm August Equity and acquired UK-based Signis Group. Neither deal consideration was disclosed.

OneTouch Health provides a platform that allows care providers to manage their clients’ needs by sharing relevant information with the key people involved in the care delivery circle. The business is owned by Dermot Clancy (CEO), Brian Sheridan (CCO), and various other individuals and investors. The business did not report turnover or EBITDA information. It employed c. 15 staff throughout FY21.

Signis Group is a provider of children and vulnerable adults’ welfare and safeguarding services. Signis trades under the tri.x brand and has been carved out from BGF-backed Antser Holdings. Signis did not report turnover or EBITDA. It was previously owned by BGF, Martin, and Ayyab Cockburn.

August Equity is an independent private equity firm investing in UK-based companies.

Advisers:
August Equity:
Legal: CMS.
Financial and Tax: KPMG.
Commercial: CIL.
Insurance: Lockton.
Technology: Xaeus Blue.

One Touch Health: None mentioned.

Signis Group: None mentioned.
​​​​​

Renatus Comment: As the Irish population continues to age, platforms that streamline the care process will likely continue to gain more traction and become increasingly necessary.

One of the key takeaways from last month’s ‘Population Ageing Report’ published by the Department of Finance was that people are living longer, while fewer babies are being born in Ireland. With this, age-related expenditure is set to be €17 billion higher in 2050, in today’s terms, than in 2019 and €22 billion higher by 2070.

Revenue increases will reportedly not be sufficient to fund all of these expenditure pressures so platforms such as that provided by OneTouch Health will become increasingly necessary to boost efficiency and provide a high standard of care.

Source: August Equity Press Release

Deal Details: E-Centres SEO Ireland has been acquired by Wise World Holdings, Inc (WWH) in a deal reportedly worth $425m.

E-Centres SEO Ireland is an independent consultancy firm based in Dublin specialising in search engine optimisation. Gustav Laurento, the current president, and CEO will take on the additional role as the Senior Vice President of Corporate Development at WWH. Turnover or EBITDA was not reported for the business.

Wise World Holdings, Inc specialises in providing innovative computing solutions and is led by CEO Jacob Adamski. The business did not report turnover or EBITDA information.

Advisers: None mentioned.

Renatus Comment: SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is a core element in any business’ digital marketing strategy. If you run a business or are trying to promote any type of content, ranking high in organic search results (e.g. Google Search Engine) is essential, and competition for those top results can be challenging. Factors such as core web vitals, quality content, page speed, backlinks, and mobile friendlessness, to name a few, all fall under the umbrella of SEO.

Aside from understanding the technical elements of how SEO functions, a common issue for some businesses is allocating the internal resources needed to execute an effective SEO strategy, which is where outsourcing to specialist firms comes to the fore. If executed correctly, SEO is a very beneficial long term marketing strategy for any business.

With WWH already providing a suite of computing solutions, adding a specialised consultancy firm such as this to its roster should provide immediate incremental growth opportunities for the company.

Source: Yahoo Finance 

Deal Details: CalX Instrumentation Services has been acquired by Ellab A/S. Deal details have not been disclosed.

CalX is a field calibration and complete calibration management company that was established in 2019 following a merger between two calibration companies. The business provides services to the pharmaceutical, medical device, food and dairy industries. It is owned by Kevin Davis, Claire Mc Mahon and Willie McMahon. The business is based in Meath and employs c. 45 people. It does not report turnover or EBITDA.

Ellab is a validation, monitoring and calibration solutions and services provider to the life science and food manufacturing industry. It also offers GMP (good manufacturing practice) consulting services. The business was founded by Leo Nielsen in 1949 and is headquartered in Denmark. The business was acquired by EQT, a private equity investor in 2019. The business has two Irish offices in Meath and Cork which are led by the UK and Ireland country manager, Patrick McKimm. Post-acquisition the Irish team will increase to 85 people.

Advisers:
Ellab A/S:
None mentioned

CalX Instrumentation Services:
Legal: Holmes with the team including Stephen Walker and Melissa Regan.

Renatus Comment: Since EQT’s investment in Ellab in September 2019, the company has focused its strategy around expansion in key markets and has continued consolidating its position in Ireland. In that time, Ellab has made 11 global acquisitions and 4 Irish acquisitions, previously acquiring Autocal, QualUS, and Instrument Technology Limited (ITL).

Ellab’s key customers are operators in the life science and food manufacturing space. Given the strength of the Irish pharmaceutical, medical device, food, and dairy industries, it is no surprise that Ellab has identified Ireland as a key growth region and we would not be surprised to see further Irish acquisitions in future.

Source: Ellab Press Release

Deal Details: UK private equity, Corten Capital has acquired a controlling stake in Ekco Cloud Holdings. The deal consideration was not disclosed but reportedly values the business at over €300m.

Ekco is an Irish cloud and cyber security specialist offering cloud solutions and cloud management services. The business is headquartered in Dublin and was founded by Eoin Blacklock and Johnathan Crowe in 2016. This year, the business had a reported turnover of c. €123.0m. Along with management, shareholders included Pageant, ACT, and Sencheer Holdings, a Quinn family investment entity which is led by Donal Quinn. Reportedly, the majority of the stake sold was by investors with the founders, Blacklock and Crowe along with management rolling the vast majority of their equity into the new entity.

Corten Capital is London-based private equity and venture capital investor.

Advisers:
Ekco:
Corporate Finance: IBI.
Legal: Dentons.
Other: Deloitte.

Corten Capital:
Legal: A&L Goodbody.
Financial and Tax: PwC.
Debt Advisory: DC Advisory.
Commercial: Altman Solon.

Renatus Comment: Ekco is a frequent feature in this newsletter having pursued a strategy of growth through acquisition in recent years completing almost 20 acquisitions since it was founded in 2017.

In the past 18 months, Ekco has entered the cybersecurity space with the acquisitions of Ward Solutions, Kontex, and Caveo Systems. This will provide another avenue for Ekco to continue growing with a recent report by Fortune estimating the global cybersecurity market to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 12.5% between now and 2027 and reach a value of $403bn.

Source: The Times

Vodafone UK and Three UK in talks over merger

Deal Details: Vodafone and Three are in talks to merge their UK subsidiaries, resulting in 51% ownership for Vodafone and 49% ownership for CK Hutchison (Three UK’s parent company). Vodafone is a telecommunication services provider with operations in 21 countries globally. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange. In FY Mar 22 it reported revenue of c. €45.9bn which cinverted to an EBITDA of c. €13.0bn. CK Hutchison is a multinational conglomerate listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange. In FY Dec 21 it reported turnover of c. €30.6bn which converted to c. €6.1bn EBITDA.

Source: The Irish News

Blackstone Motors Holdings Limited is a new and used car dealership based in Drogheda Co. Louth. The business is owned by Noel Stewart and Donal Waters. The company was awarded several awards in 2021 including Region of the Year and Electric Dealer of the Year by Renault Ireland.

In its financial year to December 2021, the business generated a turnover of c. €33.9m, an increase of 14.1% year-on-year. This converted to c. €1.6m EBITDA, an increase of c. 110.5% year-on-year.

Significant post-EBITDA cash movements included the repayment of borrowings, bank loans, and a working capital unwinding. The business finished the year with a cash balance of c. €2.1m, a c. €0.6m increase on FY20.

The business employed an average of 65 people during the year at a total cost of c. €2.4m.

Based in Dublin with two other locations in Finglas and Cheshire, Corcoran Chemicals Limited (Trading as Corcoran) is an importer of specialist materials and containers serving clients mainly in the food, industrial, pharmaceutical, cosmetics, and animal feed markets.

The business reported an FY21 turnover of c. €53.5m in FY21 which converted to an EBITDA of c. €3.3m, representing a 24% and 105% increase, respectively. This increase was driven by flat distribution and administrative costs despite a large increase in revenue.

Significant post-EBITDA cash movements included a working capital investment of c. €3.2m and payments to acquire investments amounting to c. €2.0m. The business closed FY21 with a net cash balance of c. €2.8m.

The business is owned by Andrew Byrne and employed c. 41 staff throughout FY21 at a cost of c. €3.3m.