Business Management - M&A

The Welch Packaging Group acquired PAX Corrugated Products from Georgia-Pacific amid a trend of the company making corrugated acquisitions. This supports the trend of regional companies leapfrogging to an adjacent metro market via a series of strategically sound acquisitions.

On March 2, Xerox Holdings launched a $34.9 billion proxy bid to acquire all of the outstanding shares of HP Inc. for $24 per share.

On Feb. 20, the HP board of directors adopted a Shareholder Rights Plan ("Poison Pill") to thwart Xerox's planned hostile proxy bid to acquire all of the outstanding shares of HP stock on March 2 for $34.9 billion. In another defensive move, HP announced it will buy back $15 billion worth of outstanding HP shares.

Resource Label Group announced it has acquired label and packaging solutions supplier Axiom Label & Packaging, broadening its presence in California. Axiom represents the company’s sixth acquisition in California and will allow Resource Label Group to expand its product offerings to better meet customer demands.

Though the ongoing communications between the boards of directors at Xerox Holdings and HP Inc. have been quite bitter in recent weeks, Xerox announced it has sweetened its offer in its attempt to acquire HP.

Fedrigoni S.p.A. has completed its acquisition of the Ritrama group, expanding the company's reach in the pressure-sensitive labels market, which has demonstrated global growth in a variety of market segments.

Nosco has announced it has acquired the assets of Haapanen Brothers, a 40-year-old printing company based in Gurnee, Ill. With the acquisition, Nosco adds a seventh site, increased capacity for printing folded literature and Lit-a-Sure product lines, and specialty bindings, sales aids and other commercial marketing materials for the healthcare 
industry.

Maxcess and RotoMetrics have announced their intent to merge under the Maxcess International name. By merging with RotoMetrics, a manufacturer of precision cutting dies and support tooling solutions, Maxcess will enhance its product portfolio.

A plain truth for our commercial printing clients is that a company’s valuation is directly linked to its investment in technology. We think that investment in technology is just as crucial for producers of labels and packaging, but we wonder if the message is being heard clearly enough.

The exchange of public letters between representatives of HP and Xerox continued last week, with the HP Board of Directors stating Xerox's latest proposal in its attempt to acquire HP significantly undervalues the company. Mark Michelson, editor-in-chief of Printing Impressions shares why the sooner this saga ends, the better it will be for the printing industry.