Pentair, the locally managed water-quality company, closed on a $225 million all-cash acquisition of Pleatco, a maker of water filtration equipment and supplies for pools and spas.
Pentair spends $225M for Kentucky water filtration company to build pool business
Pentair's second acquisition of the year adds to its portfolio of pool and spa filtration products
October 22, 2021 at 3:56PM
Louisville, Ky.-based Pleatco, which also makes air-filtration products for industrial customers, has about 500 employees. Pentair expects Pleatco to generate about $95 million in annual revenue for 2021, a spokesperson said.
"We are excited about the addition of Pleatco as it provides additional aftermarket product offerings for both our pool filtration and industrial air-filtration portfolios," said John Stauch, Pentair's chief executive. "The track record of product innovation by the team at Pleatco aligns with our commitment to deliver smart, sustainable solutions to help our customers make the most of life's essential resources."
The addition of Pleatco will help fill out Pentair's portfolio of air filtration and pool- and spa-filtration products. The products will be sold through Pentair's existing pool and spa sales and distribution channels.
"With Pentair's global presence, we look forward to growing our distribution and sales channels to bring our pool, spa and industrial air-filtration technologies to customers around the world," said Pleatco President Seth Soltow in a news release.
Pleatco was owned by Align Capital Partners, a private-equity firm with investment teams in Dallas and Cleveland.
Pentair — which has headquarters in London but is managed from Golden Valley — had $3 billion in annual revenue last year and earned almost $360 million, or $2.50 a share. Pentair will release its third-quarter results on Tuesday.
The Pleatco acquisition is the second cash deal Pentair made this year. In May, Pentair spent $80 million for assets of Ken's Beverage Inc., an Illinois-based provider of parts and service for beverage equipment of commercial food service and restaurant customers.
At an investor event earlier this summer Stauch told the audience that "tuck-in" acquisitions were part of its overall growth strategy.
The Maplewood-based company wants to launch 1,000 new products in the next three years and automate some factory work that could eventually reduce headcount by 700 people.
