Ratos has signed an agreement to acquire 70% of the consulting company Knightec, thereby entering into a partnership with co-founder and CEO Dimitris Gioulekas. Over the past 12 months, Knightec had sales of SEK 941m, with adjusted EBITA of SEK 140m. The cash-free, debt-free purchase price for 100% of the company (enterprise value) amounts to SEK 1,625m, corresponding to a multiple of 11.6 (EV/EBITA).
Knightec was founded in 2003 and has experienced strong growth ever since, mainly generated organically but also through strategic acquisitions. The company stands out thanks to its rapid rate of change and industry-leading profitability. Through its unique customer offerings and strong community involvement, Knightec has established a strong market position in technology, design and digitalisation of products and services.
“I am impressed by Knightec’s development in recent years, and Ratos is proud to have been entrusted to enter into a partnership with CEO and co-founder Dimitris Gioulekas and thereby contribute to the company’s continued growth. Knightec currently holds a strong position in the market and is an excellent start to our focus on this sector, which will be an important area for Ratos going forward. Through this acquisition, we will gain exposure to the growing consultancy industry, where we already have solid experience,” says Jonas Wiström, President and CEO, Ratos.
“Knightec will remain a driving force in the digital transformation towards sustainable products and services. Our ability to establish partnerships with key customers and partners has been crucial to our success. This partnership with Ratos will create excellent opportunities to continue investing in new areas in order to strengthen our market position and continue to deliver industry-leading growth and profitability,” says Dimitris Gioulekas, co-founder and CEO, Knightec.
With over 800 employees across Sweden, Knightec specialises in advanced projects that straddle technology, design and digitalisation. Its customers include large corporations with a leading position in various sectors, such as automotive, pharmaceutical, medical technology, finance, telecom, media and security.
Financing and impact on Ratos
The acquisition was financed with Ratos’s own funds and bank financing. For the Ratos Group, the acquisition corresponds to a pro forma increase in sales of just over 4% and an increase of 7% in adjusted EBITA for LTM May 2022. The Ratos Group’s leverage in April 2022 amounted to 0.8x EBITDA and will increase pro forma to 1.4x EBITDA. The CEO and other key employees of Knightec will make a reinvestment in conjunction with the transaction, with their holding amounting to approximately 30% of the shares in the company. After a certain period of time and at the earliest in full after five years, both these key employees and Ratos have a customary right to demand that Ratos acquire the shares at market value.
The acquisition of Knightec is conditional on customary competition clearance.
Press briefing
Representatives of the media are welcome to a press briefing at 09.45 a.m. CEST at Ratos’s office, Sturegatan 10 in Stockholm. Participants will be Jonas Wiström, President and CEO at Ratos and Dimitris Gioulekas, CEO at Knightec. It is also possible to participate digitally via Teams. Mandatory registration, contact VP communication Josefine Uppling, +46 76 114 54 21 or e-mail josefine.uppling@ratos.com.
For further information and media contact:
Jonas Wiström, President and CEO, Ratos, +46 76 114 54 21
Dimitris Gioulekas, CEO, Knightec, +46 70 569 96 88
Josefine Uppling, VP Communication, Ratos, +46 76 114 54 21
This is information that Ratos AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact persons set out above, at 07:00 a.m. CEST on 16 June 2022.
About Ratos
Ratos is a business group consisting of 14 companies divided into three business areas: Construction & Services, Consumer and Industry. In total 2021, the companies have approximately SEK 25 billion in net sales. Our business concept is to own and develop companies that are or can become market leaders. We have a distinct corporate culture and strategy – everything we do is based on our core values: Simplicity, Speed in execution and It’s All About People. We enable independent companies to excel by being part of something larger. People, leadership, culture and values are key focus areas.
