Gores Holdings III, Inc. has completed its acquisition of Platinum Equity portfolio company PAE, a provider of mission-critical services to the U.S. government and international partners.
The transaction was unanimously approved Feb. 7 by the board of directors of both Gores Holdings III and the parent company of PAE. Gores Holdings III has been renamed PAE Inc. and will trade on Nasdaq under the symbols PAE and PAEWW.
In addition to the $400 million of cash held in Gores Holdings III’s trust account, other investors participated in the transaction through a $220 million private placement. Funds managed by affiliates of Platinum Equity hold roughly 23% combined stake in the newly public company.
“Through a culmination of efforts by a workforce dedicated to excellence and professionalism, PAE has reached this milestone,” said PAE CEO John Heller. “We’re grateful to Platinum Equity, Gores Holdings III and the investors who share our optimism in PAE’s growth value. Although we are now a public company, nothing changes with respect to our commitment to our customers, our exceptional employees and our focus on building on our nearly 65-year tradition of being a trusted partner to the U.S. government and our allies worldwide.”
Platinum Equity Partner Louis Samson said the company now has a de-levered balance sheet and the public company currency of a listed business, which position the company well to participate in the consolidation underway in the government services sector.
“We are excited to participate in the company’s continued value creation through a meaningful remaining equity stake in the business,” he added.
Gores Holdings III CEO Mark Stone said: “We are honored to be bringing PAE public. John and team have built an outstanding platform ready for its next stage of accelerated growth, further diversification, additional scale, and consolidation. We are eager to support and watch this next chapter unfold.”