Publicly traded Vista Outdoor Inc. of Anoka, Minnesota, has closed on its $81.4 million acquisition of certain assets of Remington Outdoor Co., assets that include its plant in Lonoke, brand and trademarks.
Vista Outdoor (NYSE: VSTO) is a global designer, manufacturer and marketer of products in the outdoor sports and recreation markets. Its brands include Bushnell, Blackhawk and Federal. The company said it expects the transaction to be accretive to earnings, excluding transaction and transition costs, in fiscal year 2022.
The company said aggregate net sales by the Remington ammunition and accessories brands were about $200 million in 2019.
Remington filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July for the second time in two years, following lawsuits related to the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting, waning sales under a Republican administration and retailers (including Walmart Inc. of Bentonville) restricting gun/ammo sales or removing guns from their shelves in reaction to high-profile mass shootings.
The Alabama gun manufacturer listed assets and debts of between $100 million and $500 million and reported 1,000 and 5,000 creditors. The acquisition was approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Alabama.
Remington listed the state of Arkansas among the creditors who have the 40 largest unsecured claims and are not company insiders, though the amount of Arkansas’ claim was listed as undetermined for a development agreement with the Arkansas Economic Development Commission.
The AEDC told Arkansas Business in early August the $2.5 million Quick Action Closing Fund grant agreement was signed in 2016 then restructured in connection with the previous bankruptcy in 2018.
The AEDC said then that Remington would have to repay some incentives if it doesn’t retain 1,204 jobs.
AEDC spokeswoman Chelsea O'Kelley provided the following statement to Arkansas Business late Thursday:
"Remington and AEDC entered into a $2.5 million quick action closing fund grant agreement in 2016 that was restructured in connection with the previous bankruptcy. The grant agreement remains a liability of Remington that will be addressed in the winding up of the bankruptcy estate and will not be the responsibility of Vista Outdoor. AEDC has reached out to Vista to welcome the company to Arkansas, and we look forward to their addition to our business community."
In a news release, Vista Outdoor CEO Chris Metz called Remington “an amazing fit” for his company, and said the firm is “honored to now offer the Remington brand and the iconic green box” to customers.
“The combination of beloved ammunition brands created by this transaction will benefit shooting sports enthusiasts, outdoor recreation retailers and Vista Outdoor for many years to come,” he said. “We look forward to welcoming the people of Remington and leveraging our collective passion, scale, manufacturing infrastructure, distribution channels and Centers of Excellence to bring Remington products to more consumers.”
Vista Outdoor used a combination of about $51 million of cash on hand and about $30 million from its asset-based revolving credit facility to buy the assets.
Houlihan Lokey Capital Inc. and Reed Smith LLP advised Vista Outdoor on the deal.
