MILAN – U.S. private equity firm Carlyle Group has asked investors to submit bids for Irca in a deal valuing the Italian food ingredients maker at more than 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion), two sources close to the matter said.
Carlyle, which owns 97% of the group based north west of Milan, has sent out initial teasers to investors and expects non-binding bids to come in the first half of April, the sources said.
Both Carlyle and Irca declined to comment.
BNP Paribas and Rothschild are advising Carlyle on the sale, which one of the sources said should close by the end of June.
Irca, which manufactures ingredients for the food industry including for pastry-making, baking and ice-cream retailing, is expected to command a double-digit multiple to core earnings, one of the sources said.
Irca’s revenues in 2021 topped 365 millions euros, Chief Executive Officer Paolo Perego told Reuters.
In 2017, Carlyle bought an 80% stake in Irca from European private equity fund Ardian and from the company’s founding family Nobili. ($1 = 0.9019 euros)
(Reporting by Valentina Za and Stephen Jewkes; Additional reporting and writing by Francesco Zecchini; Editing by Keith Weir)
