PE Deals

Apollo-led consortium to take Atlas Air Worldwide private for $5.2bn

J.F. Lehman & Company and Hill City Capital are also participating in the buyside.

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  • According to terms of the deal, Atlas Air Worldwide shareholders will receive $102.50 per share in cash
  • When the deal closes, Atlas will no longer trade on the NASDAQ
  • The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2022 or the first quarter of 2023

An investor group led by Apollo has agreed to acquire Atlas Air Worldwide, a provider of outsourced aircraft and aviation operating services, in a take-private deal for about $5.2 billion. J.F. Lehman & Company and Hill City Capital are also participating in the buyside.

According to terms of the deal, Atlas Air Worldwide shareholders will receive $102.50 per share in cash. When the deal closes, Atlas will no longer trade on the NASDAQ.

Atlas Air Worldwide will continue operating under the Atlas Air Worldwide name, be led by John Dietrich and the current executive team and maintain its global presence.

“Atlas Air Worldwide is a market leader that continues to set higher standards for excellence within the airfreight industry,” said Apollo Partners Antoine Munfakh and Jason Scheir and J.F. Lehman & Company Partner Alex Harman on behalf of the consortium, in a statement. “With the strong market demand and long-term secular tailwinds for global air cargo services, Atlas is poised to capitalize on many opportunities for continued growth as a fund portfolio company of Apollo, J.F. Lehman and Hill City. We look forward to leveraging our resources, capital and experience in the sector to support the talented Atlas team, alongside our partners in this exciting next phase.”

The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2022 or first quarter of 2023.

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC is serving as financial advisor to Atlas Air Worldwide while Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP is providing legal advice.

Evercore is acting as lead financial advisor to the consortium. Barclays, Goldman Sachs, and Mizuho Bank are serving as financial advisors to the consortium, and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP is serving as legal advisor to Apollo and the consortium entity, and Jones Day is providing legal advice to J.F. Lehman & Company and Hill City Capital.

Committed financing in support of the transaction was provided by Goldman Sachs, Barclays, Apollo Capital Management, Mizuho, and Credit Agricole.

As of March 31, 2022, Apollo had approximately $513 billion of assets under management.