Rumours have been circulating for some time Val Morgan has acquired outdoor company QMS.
Now, B&T understands the acquisition has been finalised, and an announcement confirming the deal could be just days away.
While QMS has declined to comment, Val Morgan Group CEO Dan Hill told B&T: “That’s not the case. I assume the speculation in the industry is based on what was written in newspaper articles, but its simply not the case.
“People like to speculate and the next discussion is what else could consolidate. Naturally, people are looking at outdoor operators – probably others as well, not just us.
Hill added: “We’re not in the market to sell or combine.”
According to industry sources, QMS has been fattening itself up for a sale for some time.
The outdoor company released its 2018 financial results in August, posting record earnings from the past 12 months.
According to the results, QMS’ statutory net profit after tax (NPAT) is up 10 per cent to $18.4 million for the 2017/18 financial year.
Coinciding with the release of QMS’ results, it was speculated the outdoor company’s acquisition of TGI Systems Corporation (TGI) and TGI Europe GmbH (TGIE) was a clear indicator of a financial backer.
Given QMS’ results, financial analysts doubted the outdoor company would manage to make such a mammoth purchase without some support.
The speculation it is Hoyts’-owned Val Morgan which may be backing QMS comes from rumours Hoyts’ owner Dalian Wanda was in talks with APN Outdoor earlier this year.
The acquisition follows a year of consolidation in the Australian out-of-home (OOH) market.
In August, the ACCC approved JCDecaux’s acquisition of OOH giant APN Outdoor and also cleared oOh!media’s Adshel buy on the same day.
