Saint Gobain: With the acquisition of Mexican Ovniver, Saint-Gobain strengthens its presence in construction chemicals

(BFM Bourse) – The French construction specialist has announced the acquisition of the Mexican group Ovniver Group to strengthen its positioning in construction chemicals and develop its positions in high-growth countries.

Faced with a decline in new construction in Europe, Saint-Gobain is accelerating its refocusing on promising countries and sectors. The French group announced Thursday evening after the closing the acquisition of Ovniver Group, a major player in construction chemicals in Mexico and Central America.

Saint-Gobain says it has spent 815 million dollars, or 740 million euros, to strengthen its presence in construction chemicals, following the acquisitions in this same sector of the French group Chryso, the American GCP and the current acquisition of the British company Forsoc.

A major player in construction chemistry

With 16 production plants, Ovniver Group offers a wide range of solutions for the residential and non-residential construction markets, including façade coverings, tile adhesives, waterproofing solutions and surface preparation mortars.

The group has strong roots in Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, which will strengthen Saint-Gobain’s existing industrial presence in the region.

Ovniver Group is expected to generate revenues of $285 million (€259.50 million), with growth of around 20% per year on average over the last 5 years, and achieve an estimated operating margin (Ebitda) of 21.7%.

Saint-Gobain indicates that the acquisition of Ovinver Group will create value by the third year following the completion of the transaction and will be accretive to net earnings per share from the first year.

The group adds that this acquisition marks “a new strategic step in establishing Saint-Gobain’s global presence in construction chemicals”, and will bring its total post-acquisition turnover in this sector to 6.5 billion euros in 76 countries.

On the Paris Stock Exchange, Saint-Gobain shares rose 0.9% to 76.06 euros after the announcement of this acquisition. Since the beginning of the year, they have appreciated by 15%, largely outperforming their benchmark index, the CAC 40, which is still down 1.1%.

A “record” margin in the first half

It must be said that the oldest company in the CAC 40 is not disappointing the market. At the end of July, Saint-Gobain had delivered solid results, with a record margin in the first half. The French group managed to hold its own despite a sluggish construction market in Europe, supported by the dynamism of its activity in Asia-Pacific and in the Americas.

Investors also appreciated the management’s confidence for the rest of the financial year. Saint-Gobain anticipates continued improvement in activity in the second half of the year, in “a context of markets that are still difficult for new construction in Europe”, which are according to the group “close to a low point”.

Following this publication, the company is expecting a double-digit operating margin in the second half of the year. It also confirmed this same objective for its margin for the whole of 2024, for the fourth consecutive year.

Sabrina Sadgui – ©2024 BFM Bourse