Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory U.S. announces that it has signed a binding agreement to sell its U.S. legal education business to Transom Capital Group for $88 million in cash. Wolters Kluwer intends to deploy the post-tax proceeds towards additional share repurchases to mitigate the adjusted EPS dilution related to the disposal.The divestment will allow Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory U.S. to further advance its focus on supporting legal professionals with the domain expertise and state-of-the-art solutions that they need.
The U.S. legal education business, which mainly produces textbooks and innovative digital educational solutions for law students, recorded revenues of $33 million in 2020 and is profitable. The iconic red and black books have become synonymous with top-quality content. The business has about 50 full-time employees.
“After careful consideration, we are delighted to have found a new owner for the legal education business who recognizes the value of our highly regarded content and solutions and who is committed to further growing the business,” said Dean Sonderegger, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory U.S. “We are confident that Transom Capital Group will continue to serve authors, faculty, students and others in the legal education community with excellence.”
James Oh, Managing Partner of Transom Capital Group said, “We look forward to serving the legal education community as we further invest and grow the business. One of Transom’s core strategies has been investing in market-leading brands. We look forward to continuing the success the business has accomplished and investing in various growth avenues available to the business. We respect and admire the team that will now become part the Transom family.”
Completion of the disposal is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to take several months. The divestment is expected to result in a one-time (non-benchmark) capital gain. Upon completion, Wolters Kluwer intends to deploy the post-tax proceeds of approximately €60 million towards additional share repurchases in order to mitigate the expected dilution to adjusted earnings per share from the sale.
The U.S. legal education business, which mainly produces textbooks and innovative digital educational solutions for law students, recorded revenues of $33 million in 2020 and is profitable. The iconic red and black books have become synonymous with top-quality content. The business has about 50 full-time employees.
“After careful consideration, we are delighted to have found a new owner for the legal education business who recognizes the value of our highly regarded content and solutions and who is committed to further growing the business,” said Dean Sonderegger, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory U.S. “We are confident that Transom Capital Group will continue to serve authors, faculty, students and others in the legal education community with excellence.”
James Oh, Managing Partner of Transom Capital Group said, “We look forward to serving the legal education community as we further invest and grow the business. One of Transom’s core strategies has been investing in market-leading brands. We look forward to continuing the success the business has accomplished and investing in various growth avenues available to the business. We respect and admire the team that will now become part the Transom family.”
Completion of the disposal is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to take several months. The divestment is expected to result in a one-time (non-benchmark) capital gain. Upon completion, Wolters Kluwer intends to deploy the post-tax proceeds of approximately €60 million towards additional share repurchases in order to mitigate the expected dilution to adjusted earnings per share from the sale.
