Czech company again ups its offer for piece of Anoka’s Vista Outdoor

Another day, another new twist in the ongoing bidding war for Vista Outdoor Inc.

The Czechoslovak Group (CSG) is adding a stake in Vista’s outdoor products business on top of its $2.15 billion offer to buy the Anoka-based ammunitions business.

CSG has added to its deal an investment of $150 million for a 7.5% stake in Revelyst, which includes the Camelbak, Bushnell, Camp Chef and Bell brands. The deal values Revelyst at $2 billion, according to Vista.

Under Vista’s current plans, Revelyst is set to be spun off into a separate publicly traded company.

The Kinetic Group ammunition business — which includes the Federal, Remington and Speer brands — would become a subsidiary of the private, Prague-based CSG under the deal.

Vista’s plans to separate its outdoors and ammunition businesses has created a bidding war over the past year. CSG most recently upped its offer in July for the ammunitions business.

Last week, MNC Capital, a domestic investor, raised its offer for both the Kinetic Group and Revelyst to $3.2 billion. But it also stated it would withdraw the offer if a merger agreement were not signed by this past Monday. No agreement was signed.

Vista’s Friday statement, however, said: “We will continue to constructively engage with MNC and urge MNC to deliver its best and final proposal as soon as possible.”

Vista’s board has consistently held that the MNC proposal undervalues the company.

New York-based Gates Capital Management is opposed to the CSG deal. Vista said that Gates, its second-largest shareholder, is an investor in the MNC proposal, which renders the firm a conflicted party.

“Given its involvement with MNC, Gates Capital’s public expression in favor of MNC’s proposal reflects a bias and conflict of interest. Consequently, Gates Capital’s interests are not aligned with those of other Vista Outdoor stockholders,” said the Vista board of directors in a statement.

Anoka-based Vista has postponed a special shareholder meeting on the deal several times. It is now set for Sept. 27.