The Simply Good Foods Company, which markets Atkins-branded nutritional foods and snack products, has agreed to acquire healthy lifestyle food company Quest Nutrition for $1 billion.
 
Quest is a fast-growing active lifestyle brand with a highly engaged consumer base. Its on-trend philosophy focuses on creating snacks that contain high protein levels with minimal sugars and net carbohydrates.
 
The pairing of Atkins and Quest unites well-established brands with attractive growth profiles that results in a leading nutritional snacking company with combined estimated net sales of over $800 million and strong operating margins. This combination positions Simply Good Foods to continue to benefit from consumer mega trends related to healthy eating and better nutrition as Atkins and Quest products offer consumers a smart and convenient approach to healthier snacking.
 
Quest’s products—primarily, bars, cookies, chips and pizza—compete in many of the attractive, fast growing sub-segments within the nutritional snacking category. Quest has a loyal following and favorable demographic profile with strong appeal among consumers 18-44 years old with almost no overlap with the Atkins consumer.
 
Given Quest’s growth trajectory, innovation pipeline, and identified cost synergies, the companies believe there is financial flexibility to continue investing in the Quest business and expand margins that should, over time, be relatively similar to Simply Good Foods.
 
This transaction will enable Simply Good Foods to benefit from Quest’s effectiveness within e-commerce, social platforms, specialty, and other non-tracked distribution channels, while Quest will benefit from Simply Good Foods’ expertise in building distribution in FDM (food/drug/mass) channels and growing brand awareness via broad reach media.
 
The transaction delivers on key growth criteria while achieving an estimated $20 million in cost synergies over three years by leveraging efficiencies of scale.
 
Under the terms of the agreement, the $1.0 billion purchase price will be paid in cash and represents a purchase price multiple of approximately 14.3x1 Adjusted EBITDA, including identified annual run-rate synergies of approximately $20 million expected to be achieved over the next three years. The net purchase price is about $870 million including tax benefits. This represents a net purchase price multiple of approximately 12.41 Adjusted EBITDA, including synergies.
 
The transaction has been approved with unanimous support by the Board of Directors of Simply Good Foods, its purchasing subsidiary and by the governing bodies of Quest, and is expected to close by the end of 2019, subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions and receipt of regulatory clearance.
 
“The acquisition of Quest strengthens Simply Good Foods’ position within the nutritional snacking category by expanding our portfolio of brands and product offerings while also providing us with greater consumer and channel diversification,” said Joseph E. Scalzo, president and CEO of Simply Good Foods. “This combination delivers on our strategy to become a broader nutritional snacking company that offers consumers a broad range of brands and products that satisfy their nutritional needs. We also believe that our collective brands will benefit from increased cross-selling and marketing opportunities, as well as enhanced go-to-market strategies that will drive meaningful net sales and earnings growth.”
 
Quest is supported by an innovative spirit and dedicated employees committed to supporting consumers’ healthy lifestyles, he added, “and both Quest and our existing brands will benefit from sharing best practices and insights in marketing, distribution and supply chain management to deliver on our commitment to customers and consumers.”
 
Dave Ritterbush, president and CEO of Quest Nutrition, said, “We are excited to join the Simply Good Foods family and I’m personally pleased to be joining the Simply Good Foods Board of Directors upon closing, as we collectively drive the next stage of Quest’s growth. The Simply Good Foods team has a strong track record in building leading nutrition brands and I feel that Quest will fit perfectly in their overall mission. As part of Simply Good Foods, Quest will benefit from the combination of two great organizations focused on providing consumers with healthier food choices. I’m incredibly proud of everything that Quest and our team has accomplished and excited for the next phase of our growth by joining a larger, more diverse nutritional snacking company.”