ROS AV — READ-ACROSS FROM HIAB/LABRIE M&A (deck out 1-Jun)
Hiab (HIAB FH) to buy Labrie Environmental Grp. Headline terms now confirmed: PP USD1,035m cash-free/debt-free = 9.2x LTM comparable EBITDA (Labrie EBITDA USD113m / 23% margin; sales USD491m = 2.11x). #1 N.Am automated side loaders, 100% N.Am, order book ~USD435m, ~1,200 staff, 4 plants. Close Q3-26. Hiab calls it margin- & growth-accretive (Labrie 23% EBITDA vs Hiab 16%); financed w/ cash + up to EUR900m debt, PF ND/EBITDA 2.1x.
KEY POINT — IGNORE THE SALES MULTIPLE. 2.11x sales transfers to a fantasy EUR3bn EV on ROS; meaningless given the margin gap (Labrie 23% vs ROS 9.5%). The real comp is EBITDA.
EV/EBITDA READ-ACROSS: deal done at 9.2x. ROS trades 6.8x EV/EBITDA LTM (EV EUR953m / EBITDA EUR139m). Re-rate ROS to the Labrie print → EV EUR1.28bn → equity ~EUR975m → ~1.5x current mkt cap (~+50%). Gap = ROS optically cheap vs a strategic W&R print.
BUT THE DISCOUNT IS LARGELY JUSTIFIED — and note the print is disciplined, not frothy: Hiab paid only 9.2x for a 23%-margin, #1-position, recurring-aftermarket franchise. ROS earns 9.5% EBITDA / 5.9% EBIT, lumpy tender-driven (airport/defence) demand vs Labrie's stable municipal replacement cycle, heavy TWC ~EUR470m, and 50.1% Robau control overhang caps the float. A firefighting bodybuilder arguably should trade below a best-in-class RCV asset. 6.8x vs 9.2x is a fair-to-modest discount, not a screaming dislocation.
TAKEAWAY: W&R/vocational-vehicle M&A is live and strategics are paying ~9x for quality. ROS re-rating case rests on self-help margin delivery (mgmt 7% EBIT by '30) + ROS-as-target optionality, NOT on closing the full gap to Labrie. Modest re-rating support, not a step-change. Comps read-across only, not a reco.