HEICO to Acquire Leading Aviation Interconnect Distributor

MIAMI and SUNRISE, Fla., March 08, 2017 -- HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI.A) (NYSE:HEI) today announced that its Flight Support Group has signed an agreement to acquire 80.1% of the operating units of Air Cost Control (“A2C”).  A2C’s founders, Laurent and Laure Parelle will continue to own 19.9% of A2C.  The purchase price and financial details were not disclosed. 

HEICO stated that it expects the acquisition to be accretive to its earnings within the first year following the acquisition.

Founded by the Parelles in 2000, A2C is a leading aviation electrical interconnect product distributor of items such as connectors, wire, cable, protection and fastening systems.  It also distributes a wide range of electromechanical parts.  A2C’s customers include aircraft manufacturers and their sub-tier suppliers, as well as airlines and maintenance, repair and overhaul (“MRO”) organizations worldwide. 

The acquisition, which is expected to be completed within 30-45 days, is subject to a foreign governmental approval and standard closing conditions.

A2C maintains extensive inventory and customer support centers in Hamburg, Germany, Sunrise, Florida and near Toulouse, France, as well as satellite offices in Paris, Beijing, Madrid, and Singapore, and employs approximately 130 team members.  A2C’s entire management team will remain with the company in their existing roles and HEICO stated that it does not expect any employee turnover to result from the acquisition.

Laurans A. Mendelson, HEICO’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and Eric A. Mendelson, HEICO’s Co-President, jointly commented, “The Parelles have established an international presence with attention to customer service and impressive execution.  We are especially pleased that they have chosen to join HEICO and are pleased to add A2C as a sister company to Seal Dynamics in HEICO Flight Support’s distribution activities.  We welcome the Parelles and the entire A2C team.”

Laurent Parelle, President and CEO, and Laure Parelle, Executive VP and COO of A2C, jointly remarked, “We are excited to have our team join the HEICO family.  We believe that HEICO will support our growth while we retain the unique culture and customer relationships that we have built.  Together we will continue our high standards of customer service that have driven our growth since founding A2C seventeen years ago.”

HEICO Corporation is engaged primarily in the design, production, servicing and distribution of products and services to certain niche segments of the aviation, defense, space, medical, telecommunications and electronics industries through its Hollywood, Florida-based Flight Support Group and its Miami, Florida-based Electronic Technologies Group.  HEICO’s customers include a majority of the world’s airlines and overhaul shops, as well as numerous defense and space contractors and military agencies worldwide, in addition to medical, telecommunications and electronics equipment manufacturers.  For more information about HEICO, please visit our website at http://www.heico.com.

Certain statements in this press release constitute forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks, uncertainties and contingencies.  HEICO's actual results may differ materially from those expressed in or implied by those forward-looking statements as a result of factors including: lower demand for commercial air travel or airline fleet changes or airline purchasing decisions, which could cause lower demand for our goods and services; product specification costs and requirements, which could cause an increase to our costs to complete contracts; governmental and regulatory demands, export policies and restrictions, reductions in defense, space or homeland security spending by U.S. and/or foreign customers or competition from existing and new competitors, which could reduce our sales; our ability to introduce new products and services at profitable pricing levels, which could reduce our sales or sales growth; product development or manufacturing difficulties, which could increase our product development costs and delay sales; our ability to make acquisitions and achieve operating synergies from acquired businesses; customer credit risk; interest, foreign currency exchange and income tax rates; economic conditions within and outside of the aviation, defense, space, medical, telecommunications and electronics industries, which could negatively impact our costs and revenues; and defense budget cuts, which could reduce our defense-related revenue.  Parties receiving this material are encouraged to review all of HEICO's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, but not limited to filings on Form 10-K, Form 10-Q and Form 8-K.  We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by applicable law.

Contact: 
Eric A. Mendelson (305) 374-1745 
Carlos L. Macau, Jr. (954) 987-4000