Sikorsky Helicopters has finally found a home in Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT). According to an SEC filing on Thursday morning, the company announced that U.S. regulators had approved the sale from United Technologies Inc. (NYSE: UTX) for $9 billion in cash. However, the company is awaiting other regulatory approvals.
Lockheed Martin expects to fund the acquisition with a combination of new debt issuances and available cash. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2015 or the first quarter of 2016.
Previously, both companies agreed to make a joint election under the Internal Revenue Code, which treats the transaction is an asset purchase for tax purposes. This election generates a cash tax benefit with an estimated net present value of $1.9 billion for Lockheed Martin and its shareholders.
For just a little background: Sikorsky is the UTC helicopter unit that has the famous Black Hawk helicopters, and this unit has been up for sale or potential divestment for a few months. It is also one of the largest helicopter makers globally.
It is worth mentioning that this is the largest deal for Lockheed since it merged with Martin Marietta in a stock merger worth roughly $10 billion at the time. The 1994 reports around that deal put the combined annual sales back then at roughly $23 billion. Now Lockheed’s combined market value is $63 billion and its 2014 revenue was $45.6 billion.
This transaction might be considered more of a bolt-on deal had things been the other way around. It looks as though this would represent more than a bolt-on for Lockheed Martin, as it would be a significant revenue booster. This sale also would help UTC with its balance sheet and corporate plans ahead, and it may give it more spending money if UTC wants to pursue nondefense acquisitions to help the conglomerate boost its top-line or bottom-line results.
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Shares of Lockheed Martin were relatively flat at $202.71 Thursday afternoon. The stock has a consensus analyst price target of $220.86 and a 52-week trading range of $166.28 to $213.34.
UTC shares were down 1.1%, at $86.00 in its 52-week range of $85.50 to $124.45. The consensus price target is $113.13
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