APPLETON, Wis. - Appleton Papers Inc. and Hicks Acquisition Co. II Inc. announced a definitive agreement on Wednesday under which Appleton will combine with Hicks in a deal valued at $675 million.
The transaction will not have any impact on operations or jobs at any of the Appleton facilities including Roaring Spring, an Appleton official said.
When the transaction closes, Appleton will change its corporate name to Appvion. The new name combines the words "applied" and "innovation," reflecting the company's transformation from a paper company to a business focused on coating formulations and applications, and specialty chemicals.
Members of Appleton's management team will continue in their current positions under the new ownership structure.
"The combination with Hicks Acquisition Co. II provides the company with capital to further strengthen our balance sheet, support our businesses and pursue attractive growth opportunities in our markets," said Mark Richards, Appleton's chairman, president and CEO in a statement.
Under the terms of the proposed business combination, Hicks Acquisition Co. II will invest the cash held in trust, less expenses and amounts paid for certain repurchases and redemptions of its stockholders, to acquire an equity interest in Appleton.
Proceeds from the transaction may be used by Appleton for reducing the amount of outstanding debt, for making capital expenditures, reducing the amount of outstanding warrants or other general corporate purposes.
Appleton, is a leading manufacturer of specialty high value-added coated paper products and a provider of proprietary encapsulation applications, was founded in 1907 in Appleton, Wis. With 2011 sales of nearly $860 million, Appleton employs about 1,800 people and has been 100 percent employee-owned since November 2001.
The combined company will be listed on the NASDAQ exchange.
