Covion Holdings, the facilities infrastructure services company, has been acquired by Balfour Beatty Group for a total of GBP33m, just over two years after a management buyout led by manag
Covion Holdings, the facilities infrastructure services company, has been acquired by Balfour Beatty Group for a total of GBP33m, just over two years after a management buyout led by managing director Alan Bruter.
The May 2005 buyout was backed by Foresight Group and Octopus Private Equity, which will now each achieve achieving a return of 4.4 times their original investment and an 84 per cent internal rate of return.
Founded in 2000 by David Steventon and Frank Rodriguez, Covion offers integrated facilities solutions to a blue-chip client base among corporate and manufacturing facilities throughout the UK. The company has seen profits increase at a compound rate of 112 per cent over the past four years and expects to record turnover of some GBP33m this year.
‘Covion has been at the forefront of the facilities management market in its development of a truly integrated service approach,’ says chairman Steventon. ‘We are delighted to have found in Balfour Beatty an ideal partner in terms of resource and cultural fit. We look forward to working together.’
Donald Maclennan, partner at Foresight says: ‘Since we made our original investment just over two years ago, Covion’s business has prospered, attracting several new high profile customers and significantly increasing turnover. Covion is a great example of a private equity success story and has generated excellent returns for Foresight.’
Chris Allner, head of private equity at Octopus, says: ‘We are delighted with this result, which not only rewards investors, but sees the company move forward with a trade partner who can continue to develop its unique service offering. Throughout our investment we have been impressed with the management team, who have delivered in so many ways.’
Octopus Private Equity is a division of Octopus Investments, a leading fund manager and investor SME companies. The firm specialises in offering between GBP2m and GBP8m in equity finance for management buyouts, buy-ins and development capital for companies in transactions with an enterprise value typically of up to GBP25m.
Established in 2000, Octopus is one of the fastest growing fund management companies in the UK and one of the largest venture capital trust managers, with more than 10,000 investors and almost GBP400m under management.
Foresight Group is a growth manager with a 20-year track record and some GBP135m under management and manager of what it says is the UK’s best performing venture capital trust. The firm’s first institutional fund returned more than GBP4 for every pound invested.
