Koch Industries agreed on Monday to buy Molex Inc., a maker of electronic connectors, for $7.2 billion, in one of the biggest-ever acquisitions by the giant privately held conglomerate.
Under the terms of the deal, Koch will pay $38.50 a share. That’s a 31 percent premium to the Friday closing price for Molex’s common stock and a 56 percent premium to its Class A shares.
Members of Molex’s founding Krehbiel family and the management team, representing about 32 percent of the company’s common stock and 94 percent of its Class B shares, agreed to vote their holdings in favor of the deal.
“After 75 years this was a difficult decision, but our board of directors and our family believe that this transaction, which follows a diligent and thorough review process by the board, provides outstanding benefits for all our stakeholders,†Fred Krehbiel, Molex’s chairman, said in a statement. “The transaction is expected to provide substantial opportunities for our worldwide employees, many of whom have spent much of their working lives at Molex and are responsible for the company’s long term success.â€
Monday’s acquisition is the second-biggest by Koch, whose controlling brothers have garnered controversy for their political activity. The largest takeover by the conglomerate was its $21 billion deal for Georgia-Pacific.
Based in Lisle, Ill., Molex had 35,983 employees as of June 30. It is expected to operate as an independent subsidiary of its new parent.
The transaction is expected to close by year end.
Molex was advised by William Blair & Company and BDT, the firm run by former Goldman Sachs rainmaker Byron D. Trott, while Goldman itself provided a fairness opinion. It also received legal counsel from the law firm Dentons.
Koch was counseled by the law firm Latham & Watkins.
