Dana Inc. is acquiring a majority of Modine Manufacturing Co.’s automotive business in a move that bolsters the supplier’s electrification efforts.
Dana, which supplies axles, driveshafts, transmissions, thermal management and more, said Monday it will purchase a portion of the thermal management business of Modine’s automotive segment — which represents about 70 percent of Modine’s automotive revenue — in a deal that will strengthen Dana’s power technologies business unit.
Modine Manufacturing, based in Racine, Wisc., supplies thermal management systems and components for automotive, HVAC, commercial vehicle, off-highway, power/industrial, data centers and refrigeration.
The agreement, which is expected to close in the first half of 2021, will add about $300 million in revenue and contribute $30 million in adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization on a post-synergy basis, Dana said.
The agreed purchase price is $1 with the assumption of certain financial liabilities, the Ohio-based axles and transmission supplier said.
The deal will increase the scale of Dana’s power technologies business by about 30 percent, accelerate the company’s strategy for electric vehicle market growth and strengthen “relationships with new and existing light-vehicle manufacturers,” the company said in a statement.
“Dana’s in-house engineering and manufacturing of thermal-management technologies is an important differentiator, and this acquisition is synergistic to our current portfolio, making it a natural fit for our Power Technologies business,” Dana CEO Jim Kamsickas said in a statement.
“In addition to strengthening relationships with core customers in Europe and Asia, it presents opportunities to leverage our scale to expand business with new mobility manufacturers and optimize the business to deliver significant value to our shareholders.”
Modine interim CEO Michael Lucareli said in a statement that the deal “accelerates Modine’s transformation to become a diversified industrial company with higher operating margins, lower capital intensity and greater free cash flow generation.”
“The enhanced operating profile resulting from this transaction is a critical component of our strategic objectives and will allow us to provide additional capital and resources to accelerate the growth of our commercial HVAC and data center businesses,” he added.
The acquisition covers eight major facilities with operations in China, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, and the United States, Dana said.
Like many suppliers, the COVID-19 pandemic has hurt Dana. The company said at the end of last month that cost controls and the restart of operations helped limit the damage from the pandemic on third-quarter sales.
The supplier reported third-quarter net income of $45 million, a 60 percent decrease from the same period last year but a major swing from a $174 million loss in the second quarter.
Dana ranks No. 30 on the Automotive News list of the top 100 global suppliers, with worldwide parts sales to automakers of $8.6 billion in 2019.