Cobham - M&A Summary, Ownership, and Business Overview

DefenseCompany

Cobham M&A Summary

Cobham has acquired 8 companies of its own. A total of 4 acquisitions came from private equity firms. It has also divested 11 assets.

Cobham’s largest acquisition to date was in 2014, when it acquired Aeroflex Holding for $1.5B. It’s largest disclosed sale occurred in 2021, when it sold Cobham Mission Systems Wimborne to Eaton for $2.8B. Cobham has acquired in 4 different US states, and 3 countries. The Company’s most targeted sectors include technology hardware (50%) and aerospace (34%).

Cobham Ownership

Who owns Cobham?

Cobham is owned by Advent International. It was acquired on January 22, 2020.

Is Cobham PE-backed?

Yes. Cobham is owned by private equity investor Advent International.

Cobham Business Overview

Where is Cobham headquartered?

Cobham is headquartered in Dorset, United Kingdom.

What is Cobham’s revenue?

Cobham disclosed revenue of 1,863M GBP for 2018 and 2,053M GBP for 2017.

What sector is Cobham in?

Cobham is a defense company.

When was Cobham founded?

Cobham was founded in 1934 .

M&A Summary

  • M&A Total Activity17
    • M&A Buy Activity6
    • M&A Sell Activity11
  • Total Sectors Invested 3
  • Total Countries Invested 3
  • M&A Buy/Sell Connections 14
  • M&A Advisors 1

Cobham

Cobham Ltd.

Aviation Business Park, Enterprise Close, 41 – 43 Basepoint Business Centre, Christchurch,
Dorset, BH23 6NX
United Kingdom,
+44 12 0288 2121
www.cobham.com

Cobham offers various technologies and services for commercial, defense, and security markets worldwide. The company operates in four segments: Cobham Aerospace and Security, Cobham Defense Systems, Cobham Mission Systems, and Cobham Aviation Services. Cobham was founded in 1934 and is based in Dorset, United Kingdom.


M&A Summary

Buy vs Sell

Year ≤ '19 '20 '21 '22 '23 '24 T
Buy (0.0/yr) # 6 - - - - - 6
vol $1.7B $1.7B
Sell (0.6/yr) # 8 - 1 1 - 1 11
vol $1.2B $2.8B $1.9B $5.9B
  17

Most Recent M&A

Company Date Value Type
CAES Systems Holdings LLC 2024-06-20 1.9B USD Divestiture
Arlington, Virginia · www.caes.com
Cobham Aviation Services Australia's Special Mission business 2022-08-02 - Divestiture
, Australia
Cobham Mission Systems Wimborne Ltd. 2021-02-01 2.8B USD Divestiture
Wimborne, United Kingdom · www.cobhammissionsystems.com
Cobham plc - AvComm and Wireless Test and Measurement Businesses 2018-03-16 455M USD Divestiture
Wimborne, United Kingdom
The Surveillance Business 2016-01-15 10M USD Divestiture
Tampa, Florida
Cobham - Aeroflex’s Diode Business 2015-12-14 38M USD Divestiture
, United States
Cobham Advanced Composites Ltd. 2015-09-22 200M USD Divestiture
Stevenage, United Kingdom
Aeroflex Holding Corp. 2014-05-20 1.5B USD Add-on Acquisition
Plainview, New York · www.aeroflex.com
Axell Wireless Ltd. 2013-05-10 131M GBP Add-on Acquisition
Chesham, United Kingdom · www.axellwireless.com
Thrane & Thrane A/S 2012-06-19 - Add-on Acquisition
Kongens Lyngby, Denmark · www.thrane.com
View All >>

Business Unit M&A

Company Acquired Add-On/Sale Date #
Aeroflex Holding Corp. 2014-05-20 Aeroflex / Weinschel, Inc. 2015-04-23 1
Plainview, New York · www.aeroflex.com Frederick, Maryland

M&A by Sector

Sector Buy # Value Sell # Value
Aerospace 2 (33%) 123M (7%) 2 (18%) 280M (5%)
Technology Hardware 3 (50%) 131M (8%) - -
Defense - - 3 (27%) 2.9B (49%)
Test/Measurement Equipment 1 (17%) 1.5B (85%) 1 (9%) 455M (8%)
Business Services - - 1 (9%) 46M (1%)
Communications - - 1 (9%) 38M (1%)
Machinery - - 1 (9%) 270M (5%)
Safety/Security - - 1 (9%) 10M (< 1%)
Semiconductors - - 1 (9%) 1.9B (32%)
Total 6 $1.7B 11 $5.9B

By Geo

State/Country Buy Value Sell Value
United States 4 1.6B 4 2.0B
  New York 1 1.5B - -
  Michigan 1 - - -
  Iowa 1 - - -
  California 1 123M - -
  Washington - - 1 59M
  Virginia - - 1 1.9B
  Florida - - 1 10M
United Kingdom 1 131M 5 3.8B
Australia - - 1 -
Denmark 1 - - -
Germany - - 1 80M
Domestic 1 (17%) 131M (8%) 5 (45%) 3.8B (65%)
Cross-border 5 (83%) 1.6B (92%) 6 (55%) 2.1B (35%)
Total 6 $1.7B 11 $5.9B

Top M&A Advisors

Legal Deals
Jaeckle Fleischmann & Mugel LLP
1

Deal Values

buy # Total
> $1B 1 $1.5B
$100M to $1B 2 $254M
TOTAL $1.7B
Largest Aeroflex Holding Corp.
$1.5B (2014-05-20)
sell # Total
> $1B 2 $4.7B
$100M to $1B 3 $925M
< $100M 5 $233M
TOTAL $5.9B
Largest Cobham Mission Systems Wimborne Ltd.
$2.8B (2021-02-01)

M&A Connections

Deals
Acquired from
Investor(s)
33%
2 (33%)
Strategic(s)
17%
1 (17%)
Divested to
Investor(s)
18%
2 (18%)
Strategic(s)
82%
9 (82%)

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