Grupo Ferrovial gains control over 95.4% of Estacionamientos Subterráneos (ESSA)

Grupo Ferrovial gains control over 95.4% of Estacionamientos Subterráneos (ESSA)

Grupo Ferrovial has gained control over 95.4% of Estacionamiento Subterráneos (ESSA) after completion of the take-over bid launched in March with the aim of obtaining a control stake in ESSA to consolidate the Groups car park business. This transaction has implied an investment of around Pta 13.3 billion.

The result of the transaction is receiving a positive assessment. At its inception, Grupo Ferrovial already secured control over the majority of the company when the two other main ESSA shareholders Vista Capital, with a 24.64% stake and Kutxa de Guipúzcoa-San Sebastián, with a 5.14% stake ratified their decision to sell. When the offer was laid down, Grupo Ferrovial already had a 24.7% stake, acquired in the market in July 1996.

The offer price was Pta 4,300 per share, implying a 19.4% premium over the last quoted price before the presentation of Grupo Ferrovials offer, and equivalent to an ESSA P/E valuation of 30 times 1997 earnings.

Leader in the car park business

The car park division is one of the strategic lines of activity of Grupo Ferrovial and, at the moment, the Group is studying the future organization structure of this business, which will be pushed forward with an active investment policy.

With the recent acquisitions, the Group has reinforced its car park development division, a sector where it is now a clear leader having consolidated its presence in the three main segments: residents car parks, through Ferrovial Aparcamientos; rotation car parks, through ESSA; and surface regulated car parks (Zona Azul) through Dornier and Reinrod.

Ferrovial Aparcamientos has promoted more than 10,000 residents car park places in the main Spanish cities, among them, Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia and Seville. ESSA is one of the main companies in the rotation car park segment, with a strong foothold in about twenty Spanish cities and with 22,000 rotation car park places in Spain and Portugal. Finally, with the recent acquisition of 100% of Dornier and Reinrod for Pta 3.6 billion it has been able to acquire two companies with a significant presence in management of regulated surface car parks (Zona Azul), a segment where it has 45,000 places.