Titan Machinery Inc. (NASDAQ:TITN) announced today that it has entered into a definitive purchase agreement to acquire a majority interest of Rimex, which consists of seven Case IH agriculture equipment dealership locations in the following cities in Bulgaria: Sofia, Dobrich, Burgas, Pleven, Ruse, Montana, and Stara Zagora. The acquisition is expected to close in March 2012.
David Meyer, Titan Machinery’s Chairman and CEO, said, “We are excited to expand our international presence with the acquisition of Rimex. This acquisition will enable us to leverage our operations in Eastern Europe following our recent expansion into Romania and further capitalize on the global agriculture economy to complement our core growth efforts in the Upper Midwest.”
Bulgaria has a wealth of productive farmland and agriculture is a substantial part of its national economy. Rimex has been in operation since 1990 and began dealing products from the CNH portfolio in 1992. In its most recently reported fiscal year, the seven locations comprising the Rimex network generated revenue of approximately $37 million. Rimex will continue to be managed by its current management team, and the former owner will retain a minority interest in the company.
Peter Christianson, Titan Machinery’s President and Chief Operating Officer, stated, “Over the past 20 years, the Rimex team has built a strong dealership network with strategic locations throughout Bulgaria and cultivated relationships with farmers all over the country. We look forward to working with Rimex’s team and applying the Titan Operating Model to the dealerships as we grow our international footprint. We are confident that these dealerships will contribute to our top and bottom line growth.”
About Titan Machinery Inc.
Titan Machinery Inc., founded in 1980 and headquartered in West Fargo, North Dakota, is a multi-unit business with mature locations and newly acquired locations. The Company owns and operates a network of full service agricultural and construction equipment stores in the United States and Europe. Upon the closing of the Rimex acquisition, the Titan Machinery network will consist of 91 North American dealerships in North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Wyoming, Wisconsin, as well as 9 European dealerships in Romania and Bulgaria. The Titan Machinery dealerships represent one or more of the CNH Brands (NYSE: CNH), a majority-owned subsidiary of Fiat Industrial (Milan: FI.MI), including Case IH, New Holland Agriculture, Case Construction, New Holland Construction, Kobelco and CNH Capital. Additional information about Titan Machinery Inc. can be found at www.titanmachinery.com.
