The GUD Holdings Limited (ASX: GUD) share price rose 9% in early trading today to as high as $7.96, after the company announced that it had sold its remaining share in the Sunbeam business.
GUD Holdings has sold 51% in Sunbeam and its 49% share in Jarden Consumer Solutions (Asia) Limited to its joint venture partner the US-based Sunbeam Products Inc, (trading as Jarden Consumer Solutions or JCS) after entering into a joint venture with JCS in November 2014.
JCS now holds the global rights to Sunbeam, as well as its other international brands including, Breville in UK and Europe, Crock-Pot, Oster, Patton, Bionaire, VillaWare and White Mountain.
GUD will receive cash of approximately $35 million – expected to complete in July 2016 – and marks the group's torrid end in small consumer appliances.
Sunbeam faced increasing competition in Australia and New Zealand from home brands stocked by the likes of Kmart and Big-W, plus a surge in imported European consumer appliances such as coffee machines, toasters and kettles. That was one of the main reasons competitor Breville Group Ltd (ASX: BRG) headed overseas.
GUD's Managing Director, Jonathan Ling said, "JCS is an appropriate and ideal owner for the Sunbeam business. It provides Sunbeam with the global scale that it presently lacks."
Instead, GUD will focus on its existing divisions, including the recent acquisition of Brown & Watson International (BWI) for $200 million. BWI is a leading supplier of lighting, electrical, battery power and maintenance products primarily (85%) to the automotive aftermarket under the NARVA and Projecta brands.
BWI has been combined with GUD's existing automotive brands including Ryco, Wesfil and Goss. GUD's other divisions include Davey – which primarily water products such as pool pumps, chlorinators, heaters and filters, Dexion – provides commercial and industrial storage solutions, Lock Focus and Oates – the cleaning products and chemicals business.
Foolish takeaway
GUD Holdings has struggled for many years to get its product offering right. It recently slashed the value of its loss-making Dexion business, while Davey, Lock Focus and Oates are all relatively small operations compared to automotive. It could even make sense for GUD to sell off these assets too and focus exclusively on automotive.
In mid-afternoon trading, the surge in GUD's share price had come off a bit and is now up 8% at $7.80.
