Price: $130 million
What Malibu bought: One of the pedigree brands in the sterndrive and cruiser sector.
Why: Expands Malibu’s reach beyond towboats into a new sector; excellent global distribution with 132 retailers. Sales of $140 million in 2017.
Bottom line: Malibu’s year-to-date sales were up to $358.3 million through March 31, compared to $206.8 million preacquisition for the previous year.
Price: $79.8 million
What MasterCraft bought: Manufacturer of 18- to 28-foot center consoles and deck boats.
Why: Growing company in a growing boat segment with strong distribution. Nautic Star had $63.7 million in 2016 sales, $80 million in 2017.
Bottom line: MasterCraft’s year-to-date sales through March reached $237.3 million, compared to pre-Nautic Sales of $170.3 million a year ago.
Price: $875 million
What Dometic bought: Leading provider of vessel controls, fuel systems and system integration under strong brands. Both OEM and aftermarket presence.
Why: Gives Dometic another product sector for its global marine business. Strong management team, excellent distribution, international outlook.
Bottom line: Dometic had 2017 sales of SEK 14 billion ($1.59 billion). First-quarter 2018 sales were up 29 percent compared to the previous year, including a 27 percent increase in EBIT thanks to SeaStar.
Price: Undisclosed
What Lippert bought: Industry’s largest marine glass manufacturer and large canvas provider, with established OEM and aftermarket channels.
Why: Seasoned team of executives, eight U.S. facilities and two in Europe. After other marine company acquisitions, Taylor Made extends Lippert’s reach deeply into marine from its RV base. Taylor Made 2017 sales were $150 million.
Bottom Line: Lippert’s first-quarter sales were up 31 percent compared to the year-ago period. The company forecasts Taylor Made will add $205 million net sales for fiscal 2018.
Price: $805 million
What Polaris bought: Four strong brands (Bennington, Godfrey, Hurricane, Rinker) in strong aluminum segment.
Why: Gives Polaris an entire boat division, rather than one brand. Largest pontoon builder in the country, along with a varied international dealer network. Part of diversification strategy. Boat Holdings had 2017 sales of $560 million. Polaris also benefited from a net tax benefit of $100 million in the deal.
Bottom Line: Polaris had record sales of $1.43 billion in 2017, up 17 percent from the previous year. It’s too early to tell about financial impact of Boat Holdings.
Price: Undisclosed but reports say less than $100 million.
What BRP bought: One of the premier brands in the growing aluminum segment, with 275 dealers.
Why: The company formed a Marine Group with Alumacraft and its Evinrude brand, which will allow it to sell boat-and-engine packages. BRP has a more ambitious goal of improving the customer experience in boating.
Bottom Line: BRP had record sales of C$4.48 billion in fiscal 2017, up 8 percent over the previous year.
Price: $910 million
What Brunswick bought: Eleven well-known marine brands that will become part of Mercury Marine’s parts and accessories business. Last year, Power Products had sales of $233 million.
Why: Integration across electrical systems and other applications for boatbuilders.
Bottom line: The acquisition will help Mercury’s P&A business reach sales of $1.5 billion, up from its 2017 sales of $1.3 billion or 28 percent of Brunswick’s total sales.
This article originally appeared in the August 2018 issue.
