Due to the diesel emissions scandal, German automobile giant Volkswagen might be forced to sell Italy’s motorcycle jewel Ducati in order to cash in for paying fines and future compensations to TDI cars’ owners, MF Milano Finanza writes today.
Volkswagen denies it is studying a sale of Ducati but investment banks have been circulating a dossier about Ducati for some weeks with a 1.2 billion euros price tag for the motorcycle group.
In April 2012 Volkswagen (through Audi) bought Ducati from private equity funds Investindustrial (70%) and BS Private Equity (20%) and from Hospitals of Ontario Pension Plan (10%) for an enterprise value of 860 million euros (of which about 750 millions in equity value), winning a bid by German Mercedes, which bought then a 25% stake Italy’s motorcycle company Mv Agusta last year.
Volkswagen bought Ducati after the company had reached 480 million euros in revenues in 2011 and 94 millions in ebitda, with a net financial debt of 185 millions (but at the end of Q1 2012 net debt had dropped to 115 million euros).
Headquartered in Borgo Panigale (in the Emilia Romagna Region) and led by ceo Claudio Domenicali, Ducati reached 462.2 million euros in revenues in 2014, with 86.85 millions in ebitda, a net profit of 27.46 millions, a cash flow of 38.78 millions and a net financial debt of 6.5 millions.
However as for Q3 2014 Ducati increased the number of produced motocycles from 8,367 to 9,192, which means 46,458 motorcycles sold since the beginnning of this year (+21.2% from the nine months of 2014), Audi’s third quarter financial statements says. Audi does not say anything specific about Ducati’s financial figures but referres to the motorcycle sector, which actually consist for a major part of Ducati’s business. This sector saw revenues to grow in the nine months from 476 million euros to 575 millions with net profit up to 40 millions from 29 millions.
International private equity funds are said to be intereseted to the dossier as well as international car automakers such as Japanese Toyota or again Mercedes, through MV Agusta.
On the last issue the Castiglioni family who controls MV Agusta is said to be mulling for an ipo in the medium term while thinkg to grow by acquisitions in the meantime, Il Sole 24 Ore wrote some days ago. One the brands that MV Agusta is looking at is Ducati. For such a deal however MV Agusta would need the help of Mercedes or a private equity fund.
