Early last week, specialty chemical company Albemarle Corporation (NYSE: ALB) announced the closure of its $6.2 billion acquisition of Rockwell Holdings Inc. As of January 2015, Rockwell Holdings is now a subsidiary of Albemarle, and management believes the new Albemarle is better positioned to grow in the future.
ENTER TO WIN $500 IN STOCK OR CRYPTO
Enter your email and you'll also get Benzinga's ultimate morning update AND a free $30 gift card and more!
What Rockwell Brings To The Table
Nearly 90 percent of Rockwell’s 2013 sales came from two areas: lithium and surface treatment. On the lithium end, Rockwell has access to major lithium reserves in Australia and Chile. Chile is a particularly low-cost source of lithium, because of the high quality of its brine.Rockwell’s lithium is used in industries such as pharmaceuticals, agriculture, batteries and plastics, and the company’s customers include Bayer AG, Syngenta AG, DSM and Samsung. More than half of Rockwell’s business is related to surface treatments. Albemarle saw opportunity in Rockwell’s surface treatment business because of its global presence, its innovative products and its strong free cash flow. Rockwell’s surface treatments are used in industries such as automotive, industrials and aerospace, and the company’s customers includeWant Private Access to Benzinga Analyst?
Check out the latest strategies our team of experts are using every week so that you can always adapt to the market like the pros!—Get FULL Access to This Week's Webinar Here.
Benefits Of The Merger
According to a 2014 presentation to shareholders, Albemarle management believes that the acquisition of Rockwell will produce $100 million in synergies by 2016. The combined company is expected to be a global leader in four key specialty areas: Rockwell’s lithium and surface treatment fields and Albemarle’s catalysts and bromine businesses. Management sees strong growth potential and high margins moving forward for the company.