Effective October 10, 2014, Dürr acquired 53.7% of HOMAG’s capital from various principal shareholders of the company, including Deutsche Beteiligungs AG, which relinquished its entire package of shares in HOMAG (39.5%), as well as the Schuler/Klessmann shareholder group, which sold 3.0% of HOMAG’s capital to Dürr. Under the voluntary public takeover bid, which expired on October 7, 2014, Dürr acquired a further 2.1% of the company’s shares on October 14, 2014. The relevant national and foreign anti-trust authorities had previously approved the acquisition. Dürr acquired HOMAG using its own funds.
With a 28% share of the global market, HOMAG is the largest provider of production technology for the wood-processing industry, generating sales of € 789 million and an EBIT margin of 4.4% in 2013. HOMAG expects to achieve higher order receipts, sales and earnings this year. Within the Dürr Group, the HOMAG brand name will be retained, with the company forming the newly created Wood Processing Systems division. Including HOMAG, Dürr generates sales revenues of some € 3.2 billion and has over 13,700 employees around the world.
Ralf W. Dieter, CEO of Dürr AG: “Alongside Dürr Systems and Carl Schenk, HOMAG forms the third pillar of our Group. The company is a global market and technology leader and has further growth and earnings potential. Dürr knows the mechanical engineering business very well. This is reflected in our success in areas like balancing, testing and filling technology. We will use our expertise and support HOMAG in optimizing its processes and structures. The automotive industry remains our core sector – but the HOMAG acquisition will enable us to position ourselves more broadly.”
Dürr Technologies GmbH plans to enter into a control and/or profit and loss transfer agreement with HOMAG Group AG. Approval for this proposal will be sought at an extraordinary shareholder meeting or the regular shareholder meeting of HOMAG Group AG in the first half of 2015. For this purpose, Dürr can rely on a total of 77.9% of the votes as it has entered the Schuler/Klessmann shareholder group’s voting pool with 3% of its shares. The Schuler/Klessmann shareholder group holds 22.1% of the voting rights and, among other things, has given an undertaking to Dürr to vote in favor of a corporate agreement. There are no plans for the remaining HOMAG shareholders to be squeezed out or for the company to be delisted.
