U.S. Silica's Acquisition by Apollo Gets Shareholders' Nod

U.S. Silica Holdings, Inc. SLCA announced the shareholder approval of its acquisition by funds managed by affiliates of Apollo, a premier investment firm. This all-cash transaction was approved during a special meeting of the company's stockholders on Jul 16, 2024. The closing of the Merger is subject to the terms and conditions outlined in the agreement, with an expected completion before the end of the current quarter.

At the Special Meeting, approximately 78% of the company's outstanding shares were voted on, with over 75% approving the merger. The company plans to file the final voting results in a Current Report on Form 8-K with the SEC.

U.S. Silica, in April 2024, announced that its shareholders would receive $15.50 in cash per share of common stock at the time of the deal's closure. Following the transaction's completion, the company will go private and be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange. However, U.S. Silica will continue to operate under the same name and brand, led by its current CEO and executive team.

U.S. Silica's shares are up 19.3% in the past year compared with a 1.4% fall in the industry.

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SLCA recorded first-quarter adjusted earnings of 20 cents per share, down from 64 cents in the year-ago quarter, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 21 cents. The company reported revenues of $325.9 million, down approximately 26% year over year and lagging the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $338.5 million.

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

U.S. Silica currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the Basic Materials space are Carpenter Technology Corporation CRS, Eldorado Gold Corporation EGO and Kinross Gold Corporation KGC. Carpenter Technology and Eldorado Gold sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), and Kinross carries a Zacks Rank #2.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CRS's current-year earnings is pegged at $4.35, indicating a year-over-year rise of 282%. CRS' earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters while matching it once, the average earnings surprise being 15.1%. The company's shares have soared 111.5% in the past year.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EGO's current-year earnings is pegged at $1.09, indicating a year-over-year rise of 91.2%. EGO's earnings estimates have increased 10% in the past 60 days. EGO beat the consensus estimate in the last four quarters, with the average earnings surprise being 430.7%. The stock has rallied 50.7% in the past year.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Kinross's current-year earnings is pegged at 52 cents, indicating a rise of 18.2% from the year-ago levels. KGC beat the consensus in the last four quarters, with the average earnings surprise being 46%. The stock has surged nearly 79.9% in the past year.

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