The Agnelli Family Completes the Sale of Cushman & Wakefield to DTZ

For $2 billion

Date: 09 Sep 2015 · 05:00

Foto: Matthias Rhomberg . Los Agnelli cierran la venta de Cushman & Wakefield a DTZ

Cushman & Wakefield and DTZ will now merge to create one of the world’s largest real estate services companies in a transaction that establishes a total enterprise value for Cushman & Wakefield of $2.042 billion

The deal generates net proceeds of $ 1.278 billion in respect of EXOR’s 75% shareholding in Cushman & Wakefield, representing a capital gain for EXOR of approximately $ 722 million

The buying company, DTZ, belongs to TPG Capital, PAG Asia Capital and Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan

EXOR, one of Europe’s leading listed investment companies -controlled by the Agnelli Family and with a NAV (Net Asset Value) of $14 billion–, has this month closed the sale of its entire shareholding in Cushman & Wakefield to DTZ, a company owned by an investor group composed of TPG, PAG and OTPP.

Cushman & Wakefield and DTZ will now merge to create one of the world’s largest real estate services companies in a transaction that establishes a total enterprise value for Cushman & Wakefield of $2.042 billion. The deal generates net proceeds of $ 1.278 billion in respect of EXOR’s 75% shareholding in Cushman & Wakefield, representing a capital gain for EXOR of approximately $ 722 million.

DTZ owners, TPG Capital, PAG Asia Capital and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, have made clear their commitment to investing in the combined company’s future growth as well as retaining and capitalising upon Cushman & Wakefield’s outstanding senior management and brokerage talent.

Under the leadership of Cushman & Wakefield CEO, Ed Forst, in 2014 the company delivered record results in terms of revenues and margins, with commissions and service fee revenues of $2.1 billion, Adjusted EBITDA of $175.4 million and an Adjusted EBITDA margin of 8.4%. When EXOR acquired its controlling stake in Cushman & Wakefield in March 2007, commissions and service fee revenues were $1.5 billion, EBITDA stood at $116 million and the firm’s EBITDA margin was 7.6%.

Commenting on the transaction, John Elkann, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of EXOR, said upon announcement of agreement on May 11th: “We are proud to have enabled Cushman & Wakefield build on its strengths, in the face of very challenging markets, to become the great business it is today. Our belief in the Cushman & Wakefield brand and our confidence in the outstanding professionalism of its people have been rewarded not only in the record performance delivered by Ed and the management team in 2014 but also in the ambition they have demonstrated to take the business into a new era of growth and development.”