Aksìa and De Agostini announce the signing of an agreement for the acquisition of 100% of Content Group

De Agostini SpA will acquire Content Group to continue the company's path of strong growth, already started by Aksìa, which with this operation realizes the fourth divestment of the fund "Aksìa Capital IV" (AKIV). De Agostini realizes the first investment in the pharmaceutical sector and aims to support the management team in the further expansion phase of the company

we receive e we publish the following press release issued by From Agostini.

Aksia, management company of the Aksìa Capital IV fund, majority shareholder of Content Group, and De Agostini SpA, industrial and financial holding company controlled by the Boroli and Drago families, announce the signing of an binding agreement for the latter's acquisition of 100% of ContentGroup.

The completion of the transaction will occur after obtaining the necessary regulatory authorizations.

Content Group: De Agostini acquires the European medical devices leader

Content Group is a CDMO Italian pharmaceutical, a European leader in the development and third-party production of medical devices and pharmaceutical products in the ophthalmic and inhalation segments. The group is made up of two legal entities: COC Pharmaceuticals, a company founded in 1990 mainly focused on the production of medical devices, and Tubilux Pharma, a historic company with over 80 years of activity in the development and production of pharmaceutical products. Content Group's business model extends from research & development services for pharmaceutical products and medical devices to production and packaging activities and meets the needs of both large blue-chip multinationals and specialized operators, leaders in their niches. A large customer base, highly loyal and diversified, guarantees the group stable growth in its reference markets.

With three production plants in Rovereto sul Secchia (MO), where it has its headquarters, Sant'Agata (BO) and Pomezia (RM), Content expects a turnover of over 2024 million Euros in 100 with an export share of over 50%.

The excellent ones results achieved by Content Group are the result of an ambitious growth strategy, both organic and through external lines, carried out by Aksìa since it entered the company's capital. The AKIV fund acquired COC Farmaceutici and Lameplast - a company specialized in pharmaceutical packaging - from the founding partners in 2016, carrying out an important managerial strengthening action that guaranteed the achievement of the growth objectives. Following the Sale of Lameplast to the American group Tekni-Plex in 2019 and the subsequent acquisition 100% of Tubilux Pharma in 2020, Content Group was born. With the contribution of Aksìa, the Group achieved significant growth with a rate of over 10% per year, the result of an expansion plan in Italy and abroad, the expansion of the product portfolio, the extension of production capacity, combined with a renewed commercial and branding strategy.

With the acquisition of Content Group, De Agostini will complete the first investment in the field pharmaceuticals, thus adding a new business area to its portfolio of industrial activities. As already achieved in the companies in which the holding invests in other sectors (publishing, gaming and lotteries, asset management and media), De Agostini will make available to Content Group its historical industrial experience in building and supporting leading groups in their respective markets, promoting their growth path at a global level in a long-term horizon.

Comments

Nicola Emanuele, Founding Partner of Aksìa, who followed the operation together with Chiara De Blasi (Director) and Francesco Acciaro (Analyst) stated: “We are deeply proud to have supported Content Group in this important growth path. The future of this solid group, an expression of Italian excellence, looks bright, thanks to the achievement, together, of a leadership position at a global level. Sincere thanks go to Enrico Folchini (CEO), Flavio Lamoure (CFO), Luca Loschi (CCO), Marco Albasini (CTCO) and to all the company's employees, whose dedication and passion have been fundamental to the achievement of these important successes.

Marco Sala, CEO of De Agostini, commented: “The acquisition of Content Group is consistent with De Agostini’s investment strategy, which focuses on Italian industrial companies with a strong international vocation, good cash generation, high growth prospects and a solid and competent management team. This is a controlling investment in a sector – the pharmaceutical sector – that we have studied in depth in recent months, in which Italy expresses positions of absolute excellence at a European level and which is supported by favorable structural macro-trends. Our ambition is to strengthen Content Group’s leadership position and accelerate its international development, accompanying the company on a long-term growth path”.

The advisors

Aksia e ContentGroup were assisted by:

Houlihan Lokey for M&A advisory with Matteo Manfredi, Salvatore Palazzo, Filippo Maria Casparis and Leonardo Salvatori;
Giliberti Triscornia e Associati Law Firm for contracts and legal due diligence, with Francesco Cartolano, Matteo Acerbi and Ilaria di Pasquale;
LEK for commercial due diligence with Claudio Molinaro, Edgar Pogna and Edoardo Angelini Rota
PwC for accounting due diligence with Emanuela Pettenò, Matilde Zaino and Alberto Bo;
RDRA Law and Tax Firm for tax assistance with Leo De Rosa, Andrea Bolletta, Andrea Ridolfi and Stefano Ceccato.

De Agostini was assisted by:

Gianni & Origoni Law Firm for contracts, legal due diligence and authorization procedures, with a team led and coordinated by Lawyers Francesco Gianni, Ludovica Di Paolo Antonio and Chiara Masucci
OC&C for commercial due diligence with Christian Christodulopulos and Fabio Coccia
KPMG for financial and tax due diligence with Alberto Vaccaro, Stefano Cervo, Stefano Lenoci and Valerio Zaccaria
ERM for environmental due diligence with Giovanni Aquaro and Andrea Perna
Pharma D&S (a PLG company) for regulatory due diligence, compliance and operations with Monica Bertocci, Patrizia Pecin, Angela Petrigliano, Stefano Scorsini and Marco Conti.

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From Agostini

From Agostini (www.gruppodeagostini.it) is the family-owned industrial and financial holding company at the head of a global and diversified Group with a portfolio of leading brands in their respective sectors.

Founded in 1901 as an atlases publisher, the De Agostini Group is today an international reality with investments ranging from publishing (with De Agostini Editore) to media/TV, universities and education (through Banijay Group and Grupo Planeta-De Agostini/Atresmedia), lotteries and gaming (with IGT), and asset management (with DeA Capital).

De Agostini Editore operates internationally in the Collectibles segment and in Italy in the Books and Kids Content segments. IGT is the world's leading operator in the regulated games and related services sector. DeA Capital is the most important independent Alternative Asset Management platform in Italy. Atresmedia is co-leader in TV Broadcasting in Spain. Banijay Group is a global leader in the entertainment and events sector.

Aksia

Aksia (www.aksiasgr.com) is a private equity fund management company that invests mainly in medium-sized Italian companies, promoting their growth, international development and management contribution. Aksìa, whose founding members and Managing Partners Marco Rayneri and Nicola Emanuele have been working together since 1997, has completed more than 60 operations in Italy and abroad, investing a total of over 500 million euros through five funds. Aksìa currently manages two funds Aksìa Capital IV with Covisian, Content and Alba Tramezzini in its portfolio and Aksìa Capital V with Primo, MIR, Nappi, Vomm, Valsa, IFEX, IREX, Gommatex ICAM, Kintek in its portfolio and is raising funds for the sixth fund Aksìa Capital VI with a target of 400 million euros.

ContentGroup

Content Group is a CDMO operating in the pharmaceutical sector, specialized in the development and production on behalf of third parties of drugs, medical devices, including veterinary devices, and liquid cosmetics (such as solutions, suspensions and microemulsions), gels and lyophilized products, mostly for ophthalmic use, but also nasal, oral, respiratory, otological, dermatological and diagnostic. With decades of experience in the ophthalmic and inhalation fields, the Group can count on 2 companies: COC Farmaceutici and Tubilux Pharma. The advanced technologies owned, the extensive professional skills, the wide range of products offered and the human qualities make Content Group a solid pharmaceutical group, world leader in the reference segments.