Manitex International, an international provider of cranes and specialized industrial equipment, has completed the acquisition of 70 percent of Rabern Rentals, of Amarillo, Texas, for $25.9 million. The acquisition is being financed through a new U.S.-based $85 million credit facility which enhances the company's ability to deploy its resources globally.
Rabern Rentals is a regional provider of industrial equipment rentals with four locations in Texas and 2021 revenues of approximately $21.5 million, EBITDA of $8 million, and a fleet of more than 1,700 machines serving various end markets, specializing in commercial construction. Rabern's founder Steve Berner will continue to run this new rental segment and retains a 30 percent stake in the business.
Concurrently, the company is announcing the appointment of Michael Coffey as CEO of Manitex International Inc., effective April 11. Coffey joins the company with more than 25 years of experience, primarily in rentals and manufacturing and operations management in heavy equipment, from general construction to mining, and other specialized industry niches. Coffey has held senior level positions including director, general manager, CEO and chief operating officer, and has a track record as an operations leader integrating, consolidating and managing facilities and executing M&A transactions on four continents. He has worked with H-E International (sold to Hitachi Construction Machinery in 2016), a private equity backed enterprise serving mining, oil & gas, and power generation markets; at Old Castle Materials, a subsidiary of CRH International, and AMECO, formerly a subsidiary of Fluor.
"The addition of Rabern provides an immediate and impactful boost to our margins, effectively doubling our annualized EBITDA run-rate based on 2021 results," said Joe Doolan, Manitex’s chief financial officer. "Rabern's rental fleet of equipment is complementary, to our own product lines but does not overlap Manitex's current products. It is a great fit for our overall objective of pursuing profitable and sustainable growth for Manitex. With a reported backlog of $189 million as of December 31, 2021, bookings have continued to grow thus far in 2022 reaching over $200 million as of March 31, 2022. We are looking for another year of continued growth across each of our businesses. Michael's experience on the business and operations side will be instrumental in helping us chart our path forward as a provider of equipment into the industrial marketplace that generates value for shareholders, capturing an appropriate share of margin and cash flows."
CEO Comments
Coffey, Manitex's new CEO said, "I am looking forward to working with the team at Manitex to support our commercial objectives to achieve higher levels of financial performance. The industrial equipment landscape has continued to evolve and a focus on production, costs, and operating efficiencies is critical to taking advantage of the market opportunities we see in front of us. The entire Manitex team wishes to thank Steve Filipov for his hard work that has put the company in a good position to move forward from here. Steve will continue to work with the company in an advisory capacity."
The company also announced a new $85 million credit facility with Amarillo National Bank. This new banking facility provided the funds for the Rabern acquisition and working capital facilities for both the Manitex and Rabern business. Following the closing of this transaction, Manitex has a working capital facility providing $70 million in cash and borrowing capacity, further strengthening Manitex's financial position to support future growth. The company will have $35 million to $40 million in total liquidity upon close.
Manitex International is a leading worldwide provider of highly engineered mobile cranes, truck mounted straight-mast and knuckle boom cranes, industrial cranes, rough terrain cranes, truck mounted aerial work platforms and specialized industrial equipment. Its brands include Manitex, PM, MAC, PM-Tadano, Oil & Steel, and Valla.
