Begbies buys Ernest Wilson for up to £5.6m

Begbies said Ernest Wilson has 24 employees and is led by an "experienced and well-regarded" management team, who will join the group.

Ernest Wilson operates across a broad range of sectors ranging from food outlets and convenience stores to care homes, restaurants and hotels.

Begbies said the acquisition will enhance its existing transactional support services provided by Eddisons, which include the sale of commercial property, through agency and auction, together with machinery and business asset disposals.

Begbies will pay an initial consideration of £4m, to be satisfied by £3m in cash from its existing resources, and through the issue of 1,163,874 new ordinary shares of 5p each.

An additional consideration of up to £1.63m will be payable in line with the achievement of financial targets in the three years following completion.

Ric Traynor, executive chairman of Begbies Traynor Group, said: “The acquisition of Ernest Wilson is in line with our strategy to develop the group, by enhancing our expertise and service offering.

“Ernest Wilson is highly complementary to our existing services and, by extending our transactional service offering, will enable us to deliver a broader range of services to support business and asset sales. Ernest Wilson has a long track record of delivering both excellent service to its clients and strong financial performance, which we expect to build upon as part of the broader group.”

Begbies said the acquisition is in line with its strategy to develop the group through selective acquisitions to enhance its expertise and service offering.