CLEVELAND – The Sherwin-Williams Co. has completed its acquisition of The Valspar Corp. Under the terms of the merger agreement, Valspar shareholders will receive $113 per share in cash. In connection with completion of the transaction, Valspar common stock ceased trading prior to market opening on June 1 and was delisted from the New York Stock Exchange.
John G. Morikis, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Sherwin-Williams, said, "We are pleased to complete this transaction, and I would like to officially welcome our new colleagues from Valspar and the tremendous talent they bring to Sherwin-Williams. The acquisition of Valspar accelerates Sherwin-Williams’ global growth strategy and creates the global leader in paints and coatings. The combination of these two companies creates a world-class brand portfolio, expanded product range, premier technology and innovation platforms, and an extensive global footprint. These enhanced capabilities will benefit our customers and create sustainable long-term value for our shareholders."
With corporate headquarters in Cleveland, the combined company generated pro forma 2016 revenues of $15.8 billion and employs approximately 60,000 associates worldwide. It has a prominent market position in architectural paint in North America, South America, China, Australia and the UK. In industrial coatings, the combined company is a global market leader in packaging coatings, coil coatings, general industrial coatings and industrial wood coatings.
As previously communicated, Sherwin-Williams expects to achieve $320 million of annual run-rate synergies in the areas of sourcing, SG&A and process and efficiency savings, within three years. The company also expects this transaction to be immediately accretive to earnings (excluding one-time costs) and to meaningfully increase the company’s operating cash flow.