Informa Acquires Industry Dive in a £323m Deal

On the 18th of July 2022, Informa acquired Industry Dive in a £323m deal. Informa is an esteemed UK-based B2B and events business. It is a leader in the informational intelligence space, operationalizing event delivery, intelligence, and research to specialists across the globe while Industry Dive is a leading business journalism company in Washington, USA.

Informa said that the deal would enhance growth, margin, and earnings in its B2B digital services division.

The sale price is just over 11 times Industry Dive’s EBITDA profit figure.

Informa believes the acquisition will expand its B2B portfolio, which it claims has annual revenues of more than $1 billion (around £700 million) from online and mobile channels.

Industry Dive's platform connects attendees to their event sponsors and allows event organizers to create branded content for their brands.

The deal is expected to be worth around £323m and follows another big B2B information deal yesterday (18 July 2022) when private equity firms Astorg and Epiris agreed to pay £1.7bn for Euromoney (a ratio of 21.5 times Euromoney’s last published EBITDA profit figure).

The acquisition will add “capabilities in audience development and lead generation generated by high-quality specialist digital content and business journalism," according to Informa.

Informa expects to see revenue synergies by combining Industry Dive’s platform, specialist content, and B2B data with its existing B2B brands.

Importance of the Deal

Industry Dive is a well-known digital media company that publishes 27 brands including BioPharma Dive, Construction Dive, Cybersecurity Dive, Food Dive, Healthcare Dive, MedTech Dive, and Waste Dive. The company has a total audience of 13 million and more than 100 journalists.

The buyout came as Informa reported underlying revenue growth of 40% in the first half of 2022 to £1.1bn with double-digit growth in its B2B digital services division and a “strong return” for in-person events. Group adjusted operating profit was £220m.

Informa shares jumped to £5.64 today (up from £5.37 on Friday), giving the London-traded company a market capitalization of £7.8bn.

Stephen Carter, Informa’s group chief executive, said: “Our improving performance enables us to embark on the further market and geographic expansion, including the acquisition today of Industry Dive which further enhances our B2B digital services portfolio.”

Industry Dive was launched by three co-founders in 2012 and reached profitability after more than a year. The buyout came as Informa reported underlying revenue growth of 40% in the first half of 2022 to £1.1bn with double-digit growth in its B2B digital services division and a “strong return” for in-person events. Group adjusted operating profit was £220m.

The buyout came as Informa reported underlying revenue growth of 40% in the first half of 2022 to £1.1bn with double-digit growth in its B2B digital services division and a “strong return” for in-person events. Group adjusted operating profit was £220m.

The Informa share price jumped, giving the London-traded company a market capitalization push post the acquisition news.

Industry Dive is a publisher that has been around for 20 years. It's known for its in-depth coverage of industries, such as pharmaceuticals, healthcare, and business intelligence.

Industry Dive is known for its quality content and its ability to provide insight into the industries it covers. It has been able to grow revenue over the years thanks to its high-quality content and solid reach on social media with over 1 million followers on Twitter alone.

In 2021, Industry Dive generated revenues of $81.9m (£68m) 2021 – well over double its 2019 figure – with a profit margin of roughly 30%.

Informa said on Tuesday that Industry Dive is on track to earn around $110m (£92m) in revenue in 2022 with earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) of $34m (£28m).

Earlier this year, Informa sold its pharmacy intelligence business to a New York-based investment fund for $1.9bn. Industry Dive is one of the most successful niche publishers in the business.

About Informa

Informa is a leading international intelligence, events, and scholarly research group. We're here to champion the specialist, connecting people with knowledge to help them learn more, know more, and do more.

They are a FTSE 100 company with 10,000 colleagues working in over 30 countries and a presence in all major regions, including North America, South America, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Informa has five business divisions: Informa Markets, Informa Connect, Informa Tech, Informa Intelligence, and Taylor & Francis.

They are home to hundreds of leading brands serving businesses and professionals who work in any one of dozens of specialist markets through brands such as Citeline Business Intelligence; Arab Health Informatics; Taylor & Francis Publishers; Elsevier Science Taylor & Francis Journals; Springer Nature Publishing Group; John Wiley & Sons; Sage Publications Inc.; SAGE publications Inc.; ABI Publishing Inc.; Elsevier Science Inc.; Springer Nature Inc.; McGraw-Hill Education LLC; Allyn & Bacon Publishers Inc.; Oxford University Press.

About Industry Dive

Industry Dive is a leading business journalism company. Nearly 13 million decision-makers across 20+ competitive industries rely on its exclusive insight and analysis delivered through 26 publications.

They were founded in 2012 to provide business leaders with the information they need to move industries forward. Our team of reporters, editors, designers, and marketers delivers insights and programs that spark innovation, fuel growth, and shape agendas in every industry we cover.

They're passionate about helping you make sense of your world.