Ricardo finalises £68m sale of defence division

(Sharecast News) - Engineering, environmental, and strategic consulting company Ricardo announced on Thursday that it has finalised the sale of its Ricardo Defense division. The London-listed firm said the business was sold to Proteus Enterprises and Gladstone Investment Corporation through GPD Acquisition for $85m (£67.5m), on a cash-free, debt-free basis.

It said the proceeds from the transaction would be used to fund Ricardo's acquisition of an 85% stake in E3 Advisory, a leading Australian infrastructure advisory firm.

Ricardo previously announced the simultaneous agreements to divest Ricardo Defense and acquire E3 Advisory on 16 December.

The acquisition of E3 Advisory remained subject to final closing conditions, with Ricardo expecting to finalise the deal shortly.

"We continue to make progress in focusing on our core consulting portfolio as we accelerate our transformation to become a world-leading strategic and engineering consultancy in environmental and energy-transition services," said chief executive officer Graham Ritchie.

"For this reason, Ricardo firmly believes that Ricardo Defense will be a better fit for its new owners, who are focused on supporting and operating defense companies."

At 1401 GMT, shares in Ricardo were up 0.95% at 424p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.