Apollo-led group to take Atlas Air private in over $3 billion deal
2022.08.04 16:07
FILE PHOTO: Marc Rowan, co-founder and then-senior managing director, Apollo Global Management, takes part in a panel discussion Beverly Hills, California April 29, 2014. REUTERS/Kevork Djansezian/File Photo
(Reuters) -Air-freight company Atlas Air (NASDAQ:AAWW) Worldwide Holdings Inc said on Thursday it had agreed to be bought by an investor group led by private equity giant Apollo Global Management (NYSE:APO) Inc in a deal valued at $3.2 billion.
The offer of $102.50 per share represents a 35% premium to Atlas (NYSE:ATCO) Air’s closing price on Friday, before media reports on the deal.
Atlas Air offers air leasing services that customers can use to ship perishables, heavy construction equipment or passengers. The Purchase, New York-based company counts Boeing (NYSE:BA) Co, FedEx Corp (NYSE:FDX) and MotoGP among its customers, according to its website.
Airlines’ fortunes have improved as pent-up demand for travel prompts customers to step out of the pandemic bubble, but the industry has been battling inflation pressures and staff shortages in a tight labor market.
This year’s rout in equities and a drop in stock valuations has offered private equity firms an opportunity to buy companies on the cheap. Such firms were the chief driver of global dealmaking in the first half of the year, even as M&A slowed due to hostile market conditions.
The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2022 or the first quarter 2023, Atlas said.
