Another buyer emerges in bid for Anoka-based Vista Outdoor, further escalating sale price

Last-minute negotiations have borne yet another twist in Vista Outdoor’s quest to split the company into two, this time an offer to buy the Revelyst outdoor brands for $1.125 billion.

Under the new deal, Czechoslovak Group (CSG) would again increase its bid for the Kinetic Group’s ammunition brands but withdraw its investment offer in Revelyst. CSG will now pay $2.225 billion, up from its initial bid of $1.91 billion last fall.

The new player for Revelyst is Strategic Value Partners (SVP), a Greenwich, Conn.-based private equity group. SVP was founded in 2001 by Victor Khosla and today has $19 billion in assets under management and 200 professionals worldwide.

Through the deal on the table, the Kinetic ammunition group and the Revelyst outdoors brands together would garner $3.35 billion, or $45 a share, Anoka-based Vista Outdoor said Monday. That tops the $43-a-share bid by Texas-based MNC Capital for the entire company, an offer that the Vista board has rejected.

“The board has worked tirelessly to deliver maximum value to its stockholders, and we are pleased to have reached this agreement with SVP and CSG, which helps us achieve that objective,” said Michael Callahan, chairman of Vista’s board, in a news release.

The new deal means a special shareholders meeting called for Wednesday has been adjourned for the eighth time. No new meeting date has been set.

SVP emerged as a late bidder to buy Revelyst, and its offer is contingent on it buying Revelyst at the same time CSG buys the Kinetic ammunition brands, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Anna Glaessgen, an analyst with B. Riley Securities who follows Vista Outdoor, wrote in an investor note Monday that the $1.125 billion price for Revelyst was on the high end of the likely valuation for Revelyst.

“Based on our conversations with investors, we’re fairly confident that the shareholder base, by and large, will be in favor of taking the $45 all-in,” Glaessgen wrote.

SVP’s deal would have to meet standard regulatory clearances and closing conditions. The deal could be terminated if it doesn’t close by Feb. 4. SVP would owe Revelyst a termination fee of $71.1 million if the deal fails to close under certain conditions, and SVP would be owed a termination fee of $28.1 million under other conditions if Vista fails to close.

“We are strong believers in the Revelyst story and the potential of this business,” said David Geenberg, head of SVP’s North American corporate investment team, in a news release.

Vista Outdoor announced in May 2022 that it planned to spin off its ammunition and outdoor products companies into separate stand-alone public companies that would be named the Kinetic Group and Revelyst Inc.

Those plans changed almost as soon as they were announced as Vista’s board continued to seek strategic alternatives that would deliver the most value to its shareholders.

Prague-based CSG won the original bidding for the ammunition businesses a year ago. The industrial and technology holding company has increased its offer six times in response to increased bids for all of Vista Outdoor.

CSG’s most recent offer included a $150 million equity investment in Revelyst. The company will no longer make that investment with the SVP deal. Instead, it increased the bid for the Kinetic ammunitions group.

“The Kinetic Group has a deep heritage of delivering high-quality, innovative products and we will provide significant resources, investment and expertise to continue growing the business and serving its customers with leading ammunition products,” said Michal Strnad, the chief executive and owner of CSG. “We are confident CSG’s acquisition of the Kinetic Group is the best outcome for Vista Outdoor stockholders, employees of the company and the American economy.”

Shares of Vista Outdoor closed at $44.01, up 10.5% in trading Monday.

Vista and CSG’s deal was set to terminate Oct. 15, the anniversary of the original agreement. But Vista and CSG have mutually agreed to move that termination date to Dec. 11.