Ford to raise $848 million in Aston Martin deal
March 12, 2007
By ALEJANDRO BODIPO-MEMBA
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER
Ford Motor Co. has agreed to sell a controlling stake in its
Aston Martin luxury brand to a group of investors, raising
$848 million to help fund its turnaround plan.
The Dearborn automaker said it will retain a 9.4% stake in
the profitable British-made brand valued at $77 million.
That values all of Aston Martin at $925 million.
The long-rumored deal calls for British driving champion
David Richards, Kuwait-based Investment Dar Co. and Adeem
Investment KSC, and U.S. banker John Sinders to become
majority owners of Aston Martin.
The transaction is expected to close by the end of April and
is subject to customary closing conditions, including
applicable regulatory approvals.
The Casesa Shapiro Group LLC of New York served as an
adviser to the purchase group.
Founded in 1914 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford, Aston
Martin turned out its first car in 1915. Ford bought a
controlling stake in 1987 and acquired full ownership in
1994. It announced last August that it would be interested
in a full or partial sale.
Made famous by the James Bond films, Aston Martin has been a
part of Ford�s Premier Automotive Group that includes Volvo,
Jaguar, Land Rover and Lincoln.
�Its exciting and terrific news for Aston Martin,� said Tom
Dupont, publisher of the Dupont Registry, a high-end auto
enthusiast magazine in St. Petersburg, Fla. �The folks from
England that are on the mechanical front end of the this
deal are technologically on the cutting edge and will help
the company tremendously.�
With price tags starting at $110,000, the DB9 and V8 Vantage
models are made at Aston Martin�s headquarters in Gaydon and
later this year, a DBS model will go into production at the
Warwickshire plant, where 1,600 people are employed.
Ford, which lost a record $12.7 billion last year, is in the
midst of a major restructuring effort that will result in
closing several assembly plants and idling shifts across
North America. In addition, the company will cut about
37,000 union jobs and 14,000 salaried positions.
‘‘The sale of Aston Martin supports the key objectives of the
company, to restructure to operate profitably at lower
volumes and changed model mix and to speed the development
of new products,’’ said Alan Mulally, Ford’s president and
chief executive officer.
''From Aston Martin’s point of view, the sale will provide
access to additional capital, which will allow Aston Martin
to continue the growth it has experienced under Ford’s
stewardship.
‘‘Today’s announcement is good for Ford Motor Company, good
for Aston Martin and good for the UK. We wish Aston Martin
every possible success for the future.’’
Ford stock, up in pre-market trading, began the day at $7.93
a share on the New York Stock Exchange.
Contact ALEJANDRO BODIPO-MEMBA at 313-222-5008 or
abodipo@freepress.com.
Copyright � 2007 Detroit Free Press Inc.–
Two 1994 XJ12’s
Arlington, Virginia, United States
–Posted using Jag-lovers JagFORUM [forums.jag-lovers.org]–