Quadrant completes exit from Australia's Peter Warren Auto

The private equity firm sold 15.7m shares, equivalent to its post-IPO holding, according to a filing dated September 13. The transaction implies a price of AUD 3.19 per share, a significant premium to the closing price of AUD 2.54 on that day.

The stock jumped 12% in early trading on September 14, reaching a four-month high of AUD 2.85. The company currently has a market capitalisation of around AUD 484.8m

Quadrant invested an undisclosed sum in Peter Warren in 2016 via its fifth fund as an independent entity and its eighth overall – which closed at AUD 980m that year. Value creation initiatives included building out management and support with inorganic expansions such as a merger with James Frizelle's Automotive Group in 2017.

The investor made a partial exit at the time of IPO in April 2021, offloading 11.2m shares and realising proceeds of AUD 32.5m. The listing saw Quadrant reduce its holding from 48.9% to 9.4%.

Peter Warren works with a network of 28 automotive manufacturers brands across the volume, prestige, and luxury segments, with 18 locations along Australia's eastern seaboard. The company runs 74 franchise operations and employs more than 1,600 full-time staff.

Revenue reached AUD 1.6bn in the 12 months ended June 2021, up marginally on the previous year. Over the same period, EBTIDA declined from AUD 108m to AUD 102.1m and profit fell from AUD 52.2m to AUD 37.5m.

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• Topics
• Australasia
• Open market
• Consumer
• Australia
• Quadrant Private Equity
• automobiles