Acquisitions

The Toro Company recently announced that they will be acquiring privately-held The Charles Machine Works, Inc. for $700 million in cash, subject to specific adjustments set forth under the definitive agreement. The Charles Machine Works, Inc. corporation is an Oklahoma parent company of many leading brands in the underground construction market, including Ditch Witch. While the transaction is still subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, the deal should be closed before the end of Toro’s third fiscal quarter of 2019.

Komatsu America Corp. announced yesterday that they have entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the forestry machine manufacturer, TimberPro. Komatsu is expected to close on this deal on April 1, 2019, subject to all closing conditions being met.

Caterpillar recently unveiled that they have entered a preliminary agreement to sell the Cat purpose-built forestry business to Weiler, Inc. The sale is set to close sometime in early 2019, and a final agreement for the sale is still subject to negotiation. The plan will ensure the continuation of excellent customer service while maintaining exemplary standards.

As one of the global leaders in on-road handlings, Hiab, part of Cargotec, has decided to enter an agreement to acquire Effer S.p.A from the CTE Group. Acquiring the Effer loader cranes business speaks to Hiab’s already established ambition to be the global leader in cranes. Hiab obtained the well-known crane manufacturer at 50 million euros.

Morbark has announced the acquisition of Rayco Manufacturing to broaden the range of tree care and industrial equipment, aftermarket parts, and service offered to their customers. Rayco brings a lineup of equipment into the Morbark family across multiple product categories. In particular, Rayco stump cutters, aerial trimmers, forestry mulchers and crawler trucks will enhance and complement the existing Morbark family of products.

John Deere looks to accelerate their agriculture technology with an acquisition of Blue River Technology, a tech firm developing smart machines for agriculture. Blue River has built technology that uses computer vision and artificial intelligence to detect, identify, and determine treatment of plants. For instance, it can distinguish subtle differences between cotton plants and weeds.

Atlas Copco has purchased Glauber Equipment Corporation’s compressor-related business. Glauber Equipment is an Atlas Copco compressed air distributor and service provider located in Lancaster, N.Y.

AGCO announced a definitive agreement has been signed on Wednesday with The Climate Corporation, a subsidiary of Monsanto, for AGCO to acquire the Precision Planting LLC equipment business.

John Deere announced this week that it will be purchasing Mazzotti, a privately-held agriculture sprayer manufacturer based in Ravenna, Italy.

Deere & Company is betting big on infrastructure construction by bolstering their construction equipment portfolio with an acquisition of the privately-held Wirtgen Group. The two product lines complement one another as there is no overlap between their product lines. By adding the product lines, technology, and distribution networks of Wirtgen, VÖGELE, Hamm, Kleemann, Benninghoven, and Ciber, Deere has positioned themselves up as a major player in global road construction and repair, as well as in mining.