Lincoln International's experts share actionable takeaways for sponsors and management teams preparing for a transaction in Water, Filtration and Flow Control.

Madison Industries Agrees to Sell Filtration Group to Parker-Hannifin for $9.25 Billion, Valuing the Innovator at More Than $10 Billion

Filtration Group offers a broad portfolio of filtration solutions serving life science, water, air quality, transportation and industrial applications. Through a collection of preeminent brands, the company provides highly engineered products that are validated, spec’d-in and often sole-sourced, embedding Filtration Group as a trusted partner to numerous Fortune 500 customers.

Filtration Group is a one-of-a-kind platform that was strategically developed into a global leader through a combination of strategic acquisitions and consistent organic growth over the last two decades.” Rob Brown | Lincoln International CEO

As a global filtration innovator with entrenched leadership positions across high-growth, regulated and performance-critical end markets, Filtration Group is well positioned for sustained long-term growth.” Bobby Reifman | Managing Director & Co-Head of Industrials

Transaction Takeaway:

Filtration Group is a one-of-kind, global filtration platform built through numerous acquisitions and organic growth. Filtration Group was unique in its deep market presence and expertise across filtration applications, including in water, life sciences, indoor air quality, energy and food and beverage, in addition to providing air and gas filtration solutions as well as liquid filtration. As the exclusive sell-side advisor on the announced sale of this $9.25 billion transaction, Lincoln developed unique insights into not only the core filtration-focused strategics and private equity groups but also non-traditional strategics aggressively seeking to enter the filtration sector with a scaled leader.

With a limited pool of qualified potential acquirers given Filtration Group’s scale, Madison Industries had two central goals: 1) to identify the ideal partner to continue Filtration Group’s fast-paced growth and 2) to maximize the financial outcome for all stakeholders. Lincoln highlighted the scarcity value of owning Filtration Group’s premier product brands that reflected the company’s purposeful investments in leading filtration and separation science businesses. Ultimately, Lincoln’s buyer relationships, effective positioning of Filtration Group’s unique attributes and the company’s attractive attributes drove a ~20x EBITDA valuation outcome in the announced sale to Parker Hannifin.

In filtration verticals, outcomes often hinge on buyer fit as much as price. For platforms and companies in the water and filtration sector, an ideal advisor will combine a wide breadth of specialties with deep understanding of your vertical in order to uniquely convey the investment thesis to each potential buyer.

Aalberts Industries Has Sold BROEN to Vexve, a Portfolio Company of DevCo Partners Oy

BROEN is a leading international manufacturer of high-performance valve technology for the control of water, air and gas. The company offers complete solutions for the district energy, gas, marine and building installations end markets under the BROEN and Clorius Control brands. BROEN has a long tradition as an innovation leader with the development of the BROEN Ballofix® ball valve and its pioneering solutions for district energy.

BROEN has found the optimal next owner with Vexve. The combination of Vexve and BROEN creates a leading valve technology provider, well positioned to deliver on the group’s ambitious growth plan. Both product innovation and the growth of the BROEN brand can be accelerated with the companies’ complementary capabilities and combined global reach. We firmly believe that engineered solutions providers like BROEN serving flow control applications will continue to see strong demand in the M&A market going forward.” Sibert Meulenbelt | Managing Director

Transaction Takeaway:

BROEN is a strong example of Lincoln’s global leadership, flow control knowledge and relationships with international strategics and private equity groups. In a market environment where many strategics are looking inwards to optimize their brands and operations, it is a unique opportunity to create opportunistic transactions where there is a strong strategic fit. The combination of BROEN and Vexve will create a valve manufacturing leader with a highly complementary product portfolio and immense technical expertise.

When considering an advisor where they may be a narrow process or an opportunistic transaction, it is critical to find a bank that maintains close relationships with sector leaders and can credibly convey strategic fit and the benefits of an opportunistic transaction between strategics.

Behrman Capital has sold Waterline Renewal Technologies to Azuria Water Solutions, a portfolio company of New Mountain Capital

Waterline is a leading provider of engineered products for the trenchless rehabilitation of residential and municipal wastewater infrastructure, providing UV and traditional curing equipment, resins, liners and seals to its diverse customer base. The company possesses a deep installed base curing equipment that generates significant consumable revenue via the sale of liners, resins, gaskets and seals. Waterline is well-positioned to benefit from the repair of aging underground infrastructure as its solutions enable the long-lasting repair of sewer, wastewater and stormwater systems without excavation or property damage.

Waterline has invested heavily in developing its UV-curing technology that generates an unmatched return on investment for its customers and that positions the business for strong growth as part of Azuria going forward.” Bobby Reifman | Managing Director & Co-Head of Industrials

Waterline received strong interest from several motivated strategic parties that were eager to grow their share of the water infrastructure market. Assets in water / wastewater infrastructure with proprietary technology and established leadership positions will continue to see strong demand from strategic and financial buyers given the long-term, structural demand drivers.” Brad Clarke | Director

Transaction Takeaway:

Through each transaction process, Lincoln’s team builds a deeper understanding of the questions that buyers ask during due diligence. Ahead of launch, Lincoln helped Waterline pressure-test diligence questions, quantify recurring revenue drivers and incorporate customer insights to support the value narrative.

Buyer diligence in wastewater infrastructure increasingly focuses on the served regional markets and related infrastructure spend, customer relationships and technical differentiation. For Waterline, highlighting installed base monetization, visibility of consumables attachment rates and technical differentiation by end market was particularly important. The ideal advisor should understand what questions and concerns buyers are most likely to bring up throughout the sale process. Preparation is key to executing an efficient diligence phase.

Rise Run Capital has sold FreshPure Waters to Private Equity

FreshPure Waters sells premium bulk filtered water through retailers nationwide. The company installs and services its innovative filtration systems and dispensing kiosks at retail locations using a revenue-sharing model that is mutually profitable for both retailers and FreshPure. Its systems generate the highest revenue and margin efficiency per square foot of any product in the store, while also driving foot traffic from loyal, high-value consumers who view bulk filtered water as the highest-quality, most cost-effective and environmentally friendly hydration solution.

FreshPure’s powerful value proposition and rapidly consumed product lead to high recurring revenue. With pent-up demand from existing retail partners, rapidly growing consumer awareness around water quality and a massive addressable market, the company’s continued growth is inevitable.” Chris Stradling | Managing Director & Co-Head of Consumer

Transaction Takeaway:

FreshPure demonstrates how Lincoln can work collaboratively across its Consumer and Industrial Groups to effectively market and sell businesses that function across industry categories, with a consumer product sold via retail channels that sells filtered water. Any seller of a business should ensure that its advisor brings expertise across the company’s products, channels and customers.

FreshPure is a rapidly growing business catering to consumers that have a growing awareness of the importance of water quality and the risks associated with water contaminants, such as microplastics. Lincoln has developed expertise in effectively messaging the growth profile for businesses that provide consumers with healthy, high-quality water while simultaneously conveying the criticality of a business to its channel partners in driving revenue.

TruArc Partners has sold Ideal Tridon to Nautic

Ideal Tridon is a scaled manufacturer of engineered components used to secure, support and connect the movement of fluids, air and electricity in critical applications, including flow control. Products include engineered clamps, brackets, fittings, couplings, industrial hose connections and hygienic flow control components. The applications are nearly ubiquitous across commercial and industrial facilities and infrastructure.

Ideal Tridon is an exceptional platform benefiting from key, secular growth themes in the market today. The company is well positioned to scale with investments in flow control, electrical products and facility automation across the supply chain.” Brian Goodwin | Managing Director

Transaction Takeaway:

During TruArc’s ownership, Ideal achieved meaningful growth through investments in its leadership team, expansion of its global manufacturing footprint, enhancements to commercial capabilities and the successful execution of a targeted mergers and acquisitions strategy, leading to product and applications expansion. For its next phase of growth, the company sought a strategic partner to help invest further in product innovation, strategic channel development, additional acquisition opportunities and accelerating growth in key end markets and applications.

For scaled industrial components platforms executing add-on M&A, buyers underwrite value based on core organic momentum and repeatable integration capability. Lincoln separated baseline organic performance from acquisition-driven uplift and validated commercial wins at the SKU and customer level, strengthening conviction in the growth profile.

For similar assets, the ideal advisory partner will offer the ability to craft a compelling narrative from the numbers. Effective positioning, supported by robust data to support the qualitative story, is crucial to attaining the optimal outcome.

Vance Street Capital has sold Micronics Engineered Filtration Group to Cleanova, a portfolio company of PX3 Partners

Micronics provides a comprehensive suite of liquid and air filtration solutions. Its innovative liquid filtration technologies effectively separate liquids from solids to facilitate the recycling and reuse of water across diverse industrial applications.

Through an aftermarket-focused business model, deep application expertise and a disciplined buy-and-build strategy, Micronics has established itself as a leading platform.Supported by a best-in-class management team and significant international expansion through the combination with Cleanova, the business is poised to become a global leader.” Bobby Reifman | Managing Director & Co-Head of Industrials

Transaction Takeaway:

Relationships are still key, even in the digital and data-driven era. After 30 years of demonstrated success in industrials M&A, Lincoln International’s team has forged key relationships with management teams, private equity sponsors and other key decision-makers in the sector.

Through prior interactions and experience in the space, Lincoln identified PX3, the sponsor of strategic acquirer Cleanova, as a great future owner to help accelerate Micronics’ international growth strategy. Lincoln’s long-standing sector coverage and prior work with key stakeholders supported alignment around strategy, diligence priorities and execution.

In sponsor-to-sponsor and platform-building transactions, process credibility and relationship equity can materially impact speed and certainty of close. For sponsors looking to divest assets, or for management teams seeking an exit, the right transaction advisor will offer a wide network of well-informed, trustworthy contacts.