In an ingeniously structured deal, Sanderson Electronics Plc has paid UKP55,000 for a 55% stake in Ferrari Holdings Plc’s UCL Computer Factors with an option on the other 45% at a price of UKP500,000 plus attributable asset value, up to the end of next year. Ferrari only really wanted UCL for its UKP6m-a-year maintenance business, and vertical market Pick-popper Computer Factors is too small to survive on its own. Because of its size and the synergies it can bring, Sanderson is about the only company in the world that could make a go of the business and turn a drain into an asset. Computer Factors lost UKP520,000 in the year to December 31 on sales of UKP5.1m, but management accounts suggest that after restructuring it is moving towards break-even now. The UKP55,000, representing pro rata asset value, is essentially option money as far as Sanderson is concerned its exposure is limited even if it can’t turn the company around, and the structure of the agreement seems to put Computer Factors under notice to perform or be closed.
