HOLLYWOOD, Fla. and CHICAGO, Sept. 21, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI.A) (NYSE:HEI) today announced that its' HEICO Aerospace Holdings Corp. subsidiary acquired 80.1% of the business, assets and certain liabilities of Prime Air, Inc. and its' affiliate Prime Air Parts, LLC (together, "Prime Air") for cash paid at closing.
Prime Air's management will continue to own the balance of the business. HEICO has the right to buy from Prime Air's management, and Prime Air's management has the right to sell to HEICO, the remaining 19.9% interest in the future. In addition to the cash consideration paid at closing, additional compensation will be paid if Prime Air meets certain earnings targets over the next two years. Further financial terms were not disclosed.
HEICO stated that it expects the acquisition to be accretive to its earnings within the first year of ownership.
Prime provides commercial airlines, regional operators, asset management companies, and MRO providers with high quality and cost effective niche accessory component exchange services as an alternative to OEMs' spares services. Prime will operate as part of the HEICO Repair Group. From its four facilities in California, Florida and Ohio, HEICO Repair Group is believed to be one of the largest independent providers of aircraft accessory component repair and overhaul services in the United States.
HEICO Aerospace Holdings Corp., owned 20% by Lufthansa Technik AG, is the world's largest independent designer, manufacturer, and distributor of FAA-Approved jet engine and aircraft component replacement parts. This acquisition allows HEICO to broaden and further strengthen its aircraft parts portfolio following its recent acquisitions of Seal Dynamics and Arger Enterprises.
Founded in 1995, Prime Air employs 25 people and operates out of facilities in Chicago, IL and Miami, FL. Prime Air's management will remain with the business and HEICO stated that it does not expect any employee turnover as a result of the acquisition.
Laurans A. Mendelson, HEICO's Chairman, President & Chief Executive Officer, commented, "HEICO Aerospace's Repair Group has been seeking a partner with deep experience and a strong customer base in exchange program services. We were very selective and waited until we could acquire the right company with a focus on niche markets. Prime Air and its talented management team are a great addition to HEICO."
Mr. Mendelson continued, "Prime Air's products will fit well with HEICO's industry leading parts portfolio and repair services, and airlines worldwide will be able to count on HEICO to continue leading the independent replacement parts industry."
Barry Cohen, Prime Air's C.E.O. commented, "We are very excited about partnering with HEICO, a company that shares our core values. This combination will allow us to expand our marketing reach and continue our strategy of growth thru diversification. Working with HEICO will allow us to support our airline customers with greater spare parts and repair support."
HEICO Corporation is engaged primarily in certain niche segments of the aviation, defense, space and electronics industries through its Hollywood, FL-based HEICO Aerospace Holdings Corp. subsidiary and its Miami, FL-based HEICO Electronic Technologies Corp. subsidiary. HEICO's customers include a majority of the world's airlines and airmotives as well as numerous defense and space contractors and military agencies worldwide in addition to telecommunications, electronics and medical equipment manufacturers. For more information about HEICO, please visit our web site at http://www.heico.com.
Certain statements in this press release constitute forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. HEICO's actual results could differ materially from those expressed in or implied by those forward-looking statements as a result of factors, including, but not limited to: lower demand for commercial air travel or airline fleet changes, which could cause lower demand for our goods and services; product specification costs and requirements, which could cause an increase to our costs to complete contracts; governmental and regulatory demands, export policies and restrictions, reductions in defense or space spending by U.S. and/or foreign customers, or competition from existing and new competitors, which could reduce our sales; HEICO's ability to introduce new products and product pricing levels, which could reduce our sales or sales growth; HEICO's ability to make acquisitions and achieve operating synergies from acquired businesses, customer credit risk, interest rates and economic conditions within and outside of the aerospace, defense, space and electronics industries, which could negatively impact our costs and revenues. Parties receiving this material are encouraged to review all of HEICO's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, but not limited to filings on Form 10-K, Form 10-Q and Form 8-K. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.