AGCO and TAFE conclude commercial partnership with $260m share buyback
AGCO Corp has agreed with TAFE to resolve all outstanding disputes and matters related to their commercial relationship.
A recently announced joint venture agreement between the two companies, will see AGCO pay Trimble US$2 billion for an 85% stake in Trimble.
Meanwhile, JCA Technologies, the Manitoba-based autonomous technology company will also be brought under the joint venture umbrella.
The transaction is said to create the premier mixed-fleet precision ag business in the world and help accelerate AGCO’s strategic transformation.
“This deal significantly enhances AGCO’s technology stack with disruptive technologies that cover every aspect of the crop cycle, which ultimately helps us better serve farmers no matter what brand they use,” AGCO’s chairman and chief executive Eric Hansotia says.
The two companies say they plan to leverage multi-channel access across Trimble Ag, and AGCO OEMs, which include Fendt, Challenger, Massey, Valtra, and Gleaner, other OEM customers and precision planting dealers.
“The exclusive access to Trimble Ag products, combined with AGCO’s existing precision ag offerings will also help accelerate AGCO’s growth ambitions around autonomy, precision spraying, connected farming, data management and sustainability, and result in us being even more farmer focused,” Hansotia adds.
“Farmers today are looking for mixed fleet solutions across the tractors and implements they use to efficiently and sustainably feed the world,” Trimble chief executive Rob Painter explains.
“We believe a joint venture with AGCO, complemented by the successful mixed fleet approach that they have developed with their precision planting business model, will help us better serve farmers and OEMs together.”
The $2 billion purchase price for AGCO’s 85% ownership in the Trimble Ag business represents an implied enterprise value of approximately $2.35 billion and works out to a transaction multiple of approximately 13.8x based on 2023MY likely EBITDA of approximately $170 million.
The transaction is not subject to any financing conditions, with both companies saying they are expecting to close the deal in the first half of 2024.
