Maxar Technologies Inc MAXR-T, a provider of high-resolution satellite images of the Ukraine war, said on Friday private-equity firm Advent International will buy the satellite owner and operator for about $4-billion.
Advent has offered $53 per Maxar share held, a premium of nearly 129 per cent to the stock’s last close. Maxar’s shares jumped nearly 121 per cent in early trading.
Westminster, Colorado-based Maxar has more than 90 satellites in orbit that provide communications, imagery and data to customers including the U.S government, Intelsat and SiriusXM.
The company is also involved with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Artemis program to return to the moon.
Advent has invested nearly $28-billion in defense, security and cybersecurity in the last three years, with its portfolio companies supporting many satellite and defense platforms and serving the U.S. government and its allies.
The Maxar deal is valued at $6.4-billion, including debt, and is expected to close in mid-2023. The agreement also includes a 60-day “go-shop” period.
“There may be a defense prime such as Raytheon or L3Harris that would be willing to put in another bid in the go-shop period,” said Canaccord Genuity analyst Austin Moeller, adding that given the challenges of getting a defense merger through the U.S. Federal Trade Commission chair Lina Khan, private equity is likely the best choice for Maxar.
In February, Lockheed Martin terminated its deal to acquire Aerojet Rocketdyne following the FTC lawsuit to block the acquisition.
Funds advised by Advent have committed up to $3.1-billion, while British Columbia Investment Management Corp will provide a minority equity investment equal to $1-billion.
Maxar, whose history can be traced back to 1950s, has lost about 20 per cent in market value so far this year, compared with losses of more than 50 per cent for other satellite imagery companies such as Satellogic Inc and Spire Global Inc that went public through mergers with blank-check firms.
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