Jul 19 2010
On Assignment, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASGN) announced today the acquisition of Sharpstream, a privately owned provider of search services for executive to middle managers in the life sciences sector globally.
“My team and I are excited about the prospect of joining a group that is aligned with the same principles of a commitment to high quality services. This partnership will strengthen our ability to fast-track our growth plans for our core and emerging markets.”
The consideration for the transaction is $5.0 million in cash and a two year earn-out provision. The cash portion of the purchase price was funded from cash on hand at On Assignment. Sharpstream is headquartered in London, England with branch offices in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Shanghai, China. Martin Reynolds, CEO of Sharpstream and Keith Brown, Director of Sales Administration for Sharpstream, will remain with On Assignment and lead operations of our retained search business for life sciences. Mr. Reynolds will report to Emmett McGrath, President of Life Sciences and Allied Healthcare.
Sharpstream had approximately $5 million in revenue in fiscal year 2009. The acquisition is expected to be immediately accretive to On Assignment's gross margins, EBITDA margins, and EPS. On Assignment's management team will share more details regarding the acquisition during its second quarter earnings conference call scheduled for July 29, 2010.
"Sharpstream is an international retained search company offering a global reach with offices in Europe, North America, and Asia. Currently, there is an equal split on project search work in discovery, clinical development, manufacturing, medical, and commercial. We hope to use their Shanghai office as a base of operations to launch On Assignment's legacy scientific and clinical research offerings in China."
"This acquisition is strategically significant as Sharpstream, along with the recent purchase and integration of The Cambridge Group, completes our offerings in the life sciences arena. This latest acquisition enhances our value and ability to serve our clients throughout North America, The United Kingdom, Northern Europe, and now Latin America and Asia," stated Peter Dameris, President and CEO of On Assignment, Inc.
Martin Reynolds commented, "My team and I are excited about the prospect of joining a group that is aligned with the same principles of a commitment to high quality services. This partnership will strengthen our ability to fast-track our growth plans for our core and emerging markets."
Dameris concluded, "We view this acquisition as an opportunity to enhance our life sciences offerings and to further expand our global presence. We welcome the entire group at Sharpstream to the On Assignment family, and look forward to a very successful partnership."