Corporate e-learning group Learning Technologies (LTG) is to buy PeopleFluent – a cloud-based talent management platform – in its largest acquisition to date. The $150m (£107m) takeover is to be funded by a share placing and up to $48m in incremental debt financing. In the event, LTG placed 86.7 shares at 98p each, raising a total of £85m – higher than management's original target.
For chief executive Jonathan Satchell, the deal will be “transformative” for LTG’s US presence. He also notes that “learning and talent are closely aligned” and that the combined concepts will become more important as companies face pressure to attract and retain employees.
The financial appeal of PeopleFluent is clear. The target company generated revenue of £82.8m in 2017, 86 per cent of which was recurring. Its integration would turn LTG into a business with sales of approximately £135m; by comparison, LTG’s top line reached £52.1m last year. The enlarged group’s recurring revenues would also rise significantly from 39 per cent to 68 per cent. The acquisition is expected to be immediately earnings enhancing, subject to completion in May.
