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Wicks Business Information to Sell Alternate Investor to Dow Jones for $85 Million
Wicks Business Information to Sell Alternate Investor to Dow Jones for $85 Million
FAIRFIELD, CT (February 19, 2004) - Wicks Business Information announced today that it has agreed to sell Alternative Investor to Dow Jones & Company for $85 million, plus working capital and a potential performance-based payment of $5 million. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions and is expected to close by the end of the first quarter of 2004.
Wicks Business Information, a company focused on acquiring and managing businesses with specialized information products serving the financial and general business sectors, successfully built Alternative Investor over the past four years. Created through the combination of three independent companies - Asset Alternatives, VentureOne and Venture Reporter - Alternative Investor has become a powerful and profitable leader in providing data, analysis, news and events to the private equity community around the globe.
"The quality and performance of the core products within Alternative Investor have been impressive over recent years," said Doug Manoni, chief executive officer of Wicks Business Information. "The strong performance stands as a testament to both the strength of the brands, the value of the information and the commitment of the employees." The flagship products of Alternative Investor include The Private Equity Analyst newsletters, the VentureSource database of venture-backed companies, and a portfolio of market-leading industry events anchored by The Private Equity Analyst Conference.
Upon completion of the transaction, Alternative Investor will be integrated with Dow Jones Newswires, which is expanding its capability to provide news and information to financial professionals that is currently not available on market-data terminals. "We have worked hard over the past year to position Alternative Investor to capitalize on the surge of activity in the private equity arena, which has clearly begun," said Willy Burkhardt, president and chief operating officer of Wicks Business Information. "I expect the business will continue to flourish under its new ownership, especially given the close strategic fit between Dow Jones Newswires and Alternative Investor."
The acquisition of Alternative Investor will significantly enhance Dow Jones Newswires existing lineup of market-information products on closely held companies. "For more than a century, Dow Jones has been the leader in coverage of publicly traded companies. Now we will also be the leader in news and information on privately held firms, venture-capital markets and analysis of private capital," said L. Gordon Crovitz, senior vice president of Dow Jones and president, Electronic Publishing. "We are pleased to add this area of coverage at a time when venture capital and private equity professionals play such a key role in the global capital markets."
Going forward, Wicks Business Information will continue to manage and build its existing portfolio of businesses, while seeking new acquisition opportunities. Doug Manoni added, "Alternative Investor represents a considerable component of our current portfolio; however, Wicks Business Information has no intention of selling its remaining assets in the near future. We are looking forward to returning to the marketplace as an aggressive acquirer, with the strategy to strengthen our position in our current sectors and to pursue potential new segments."
The Jordan, Edmiston Group, Inc. of New York initiated this transaction and represented Wicks Business Information in negotiations.
About Wicks Business Information
Based in Fairfield, CT, Wicks Business Information (www.wicksbusinessinfo.com) concentrates on growth by acquisition and development of business publications,
databases, conferences and specialized information products serving the financial industry and the general business sector. The WBI portfolio also includes Investment Advisor and Treasury & Risk Management franchises, as well as the Briefings Publishing Group of professional development media. Wicks Business Information is an affiliate of The Wicks Group of Companies, L.L.C., (www.wicksgroup.com), a private equity firm focused on selected segments of the communications, information and media industries.
About Dow Jones & Company
Dow Jones & Company (NYSE: DJ; www.dowjones.com) publishes The Wall Street Journal and its international and online editions, Barron's and the Far Eastern Economic Review, Dow Jones Newswires, Dow Jones Indexes, and the Ottaway group of community newspapers. Dow Jones is co-owner with Reuters Group of Factiva, with Hearst of SmartMoney and with NBC of CNBC television operations in Asia and Europe. Dow Jones also provides news content to CNBC and radio stations in the U.S.
Media Contacts:
Douglas J. Manoni
Wicks Business Information
(203) 255-4990 ext 18
dmanoni@wicksbusinessinfo.com
Peter G. Smith
The Wicks Group of Companies
(212) 407-2203
peter.smith@wicksgroup.com
Robert H. Christie
Dow Jones & Company
(609) 520-5051
robert.christie@dowjones.com
Wicks Business Information, LLC
363 Reef Road
Fairfield, CT 06430
Tel. 203-255-4990
Fax: 203-255-4353 |
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