Iron Mountain (IRM) acquires IO Data Centers’ US operations for $1.3 billion

IO Data Centers, LLC

• io.com
• Founded: 2007

 

Iron Mountain to acquire the US operations of IO Data Centers for $1.315 billion plus up to $60 million based on future performance; expected to close in early 2018 and be accretive to 2019 AFFO 

• Co has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the U.S. operations of IO Data Centers LLC, a leading colocation data center services provider based in Phoenix, Arizona, for $1.315 billion plus up to $60 million based on future performance and subject to customary adjustments. With the transaction, Iron Mountain will acquire the land and buildings associated with four state-of-the-art data centers in Phoenix and Scottsdale, Arizona; Edison, New Jersey; and Columbus, Ohio. The existing data center space in the four owned facilities totals 728,000 square feet, providing 62 megawatts (MW) of capacity with expansion potential of an additional 77 MW in Arizona and New Jersey. This agreement follows the acquisition of FORTRUST data center on September 1, 2017 and the announcement of Iron Mountain's international data center expansion through the planned acquisition of two Credit Suisse data centers in the London and Singapore markets. Upon closing of the Credit Suisse and IO transactions in early 2018, Iron Mountain's data center portfolio will total more than 90 MW of existing capacity, with an additional 26 MW of capacity currently under construction and planned and future expansion potential of another 135 MW.
• Transaction Economics: The transaction is anticipated to close in January 2018, subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions. The total consideration of $1.315 billion, which does not include up to $60 million of potential additional payments, represents a multiple of 15x synergized 2018 EBITDA, post integration. While data center acquisitions of this magnitude were not part of the company's previously disclosed 2020 plan, the company expects the transaction to accelerate its revenue and Adjusted EBITDA growth. Following this transaction and anticipated financing, the company remains on track to reduce its lease adjusted leverage ratio to approximately 5x, and lower its dividend payout as a percentage of Adjusted Funds From Operations to 70-75%, assuming annual dividend per share growth of approximately 4%, all of which are consistent with its 2020 plan. The acquisition is expected to be modestly accretive to AFFO in 2019. The company will provide specifics of the impact of the transaction on 2018 full-year expectations when it provides guidance for next year on its fourth quarter/year-end reporting conference call in February 2018.

Iron Mountain also commenced an underwritten public offering of 14,500,000 shares of its common stock 
The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering, together with the proceeds from a new senior unsecured debt financing, to finance the purchase price of the acquisition of IO Data Centers.