Evolve announces new Australian acquisitions, confirms dividend resumption for Q421

Evolve Education Group has confirmed that it has contracted to acquire ten early childhood education and care (ECEC) centres and also that the Board has confirmed a resumption of the payment of dividends in Q4 2021. 

The ten centres, all located in Australia, will add $8.2 million of earnings before interest and tax (EBITDA) to the Group at a cost of $27.13 million up front with a further $5.0 million deferred component bringing the net multiple paid for the centres to 3.9 times EBITDA. 

This latest round of purchases are the first since October 2019 when the Group announced the acquisition of four ECEC centres in Australia for a total of $11.8 million. 

Evolve Education Group Managing Director, Chris Scott commented, “This latest acquisition takes the total number of centres operated by EVO to 116 in New Zealand and twenty in Australia. Minimal additional Support Office costs will be incurred in managing these extra ten centres.”

The acquisitions will be funded by cash reserves which were boosted in December 2020 post the issue of a $35 million bond which was partly used to pay down debt with the balance, alongside cash generated by the business, earmarked for this latest round of purchases. 

Evolve also confirmed that it will be resuming the payments of dividends in the final quarter of 2021, eighteen months after its last declared dividend, which was suspended due to the COVD-19 pandemic.