Mears Grp PLC - Acquisition

Mears Group PLC

Acquisition of Pennington Choices Group Limited

Mears Group PLC ("Mears" or "the Group"), the leading provider of housing services to the public and regulated sectors in the UK is pleased to announce it has acquired 100% of the share capital of Pennington Choices Group Limited ("Pennington Choices" or "PCL") for a total cash consideration of £9.5m settled in full on completion and financed from existing cash resources. The business is acquired on a debt and cash free basis, with a normal level of working capital.

Based in Warrington, PCL was established in 2000 by the former majority shareholder Mark Seaborn and employs around 150 people. Mark will remain with the business following completion to ensure a smooth transition and integration into the wider Group. PCL has a strong reputation in the social housing market delivering a range of Compliance activities, including but not limited to stock condition surveys, fire risk assessments, energy performance certification, asbestos testing and consultancy services. Mears estimates that PCL will deliver revenue and adjusted EBITDA (post-synergies) of £17.0m and £1.5m respectively, and be earnings accretive, in its first full year in the Group.

A key component of the Group's strategy is developing its Compliance and Asset Management service offering. The housing compliance market is fragmented, largely single service led, and presents a significant growth opportunity. The PCL acquisition extends Mears' capabilities in this area, strengthening its well-rounded, holistic service offer and accelerating progress in a key component of the Mears strategic plan.

Lucas Critchley, Chief Executive Officer of the Group, commented:

"Mears has made solid progress in developing its systems and front-line capability to deliver Compliance services. Pennington Choices' core competencies in professional and technical services are complementary to Mears' existing offer and this acquisition will accelerate our progress in the attractive and growing Compliance space.

"In addition to the strategic fit, importantly, we also see a strong cultural alignment between both organisations, particularly in terms of the emphasis given to the investment in, and development of, our respective teams, and I am excited to welcome the employees and customers of Pennington Choices to the Group."

For further information, contact:  

Mears Group PLC                                                                                                               Tel: +44(0)1452 634 600

Lucas Critchley   

Andrew Smith     

Deutsche Numis                                                                                                                  Tel: +44(0)207 260 1000

Julian Cater         

Kevin Cruickshank             

Panmure Liberum                                                                                                                               Tel: +44(0)207 886 2500

Tom Scrivens      

James Sinclair-Ford          

About Mears

Mears is a leading provider of services to the Affordable Housing sector, providing a range of services to individuals within their homes. We manage and maintain around 450,000 homes across the UK and work predominantly with Central Government and Local Government, typically through long-term contracts. We equally consider the residents of the homes that we manage and maintain to be our customers, and we take pride in the high levels of customer satisfaction that we achieve.

Mears currently employs over 5,000 people and provides services in every region of the UK. In partnership with our Housing clients, we provide property management and maintenance services. Mears has extended its activities to provide broader housing solutions to solve the challenge posed by the lack of affordable housing and to provide accommodation and support for the most vulnerable.

We focus on long-term outcomes for people rather than short-term solutions and invest in innovations that have a positive impact on people's quality of life and on their communities' social, economic, and environmental wellbeing. Our innovative approaches and market leading positions are intended to create value for our customers and the people they serve while also driving sustainable financial returns for our providers of capital, especially our shareholders.