LThe State rarely does good business when it gets involved in private investment, but it can allow others to do it, and very good ones. This Friday, the Exosens company will go public in Paris. Success is already assured, since the order book opened to institutional investors on Monday June 3 was filled at lightning speed and promises an entry into the market with a valuation exceeding one billion euros.
Not bad, for a company with 319 million euros in turnover and 1,600 employees. But it is its recent history which is singular, and instructive as to the destiny of French technology companies. Because this entry with fanfare into the financial markets is the result of a blockage by the State.
In December 2020, the government banned the sale of this company, which was then called Photonis, to the American group Teledyne. The company specializes in night vision. Its components equip the glasses of fighters on the battlefields. Photonis is the leader in this market, outside the United States. The owner at the time, the Ardian investment fund, however, thought they had found a good candidate. Teledyne is a renowned industrial company, very present in France and supplier to the French army. But the State, under pressure from deputies, feared an aspiration of know-how and consequences on employment, particularly for its factory in Brive-la-Gaillarde (Corrèze).
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This unforeseen decision will change the destiny of the company… to the detriment of its owner. Teledyne offered more than 500 million euros, which would have allowed Ardian to cover its costs at a time when the company was recovering after difficult years. She had to resolve to accept the offer from the only French person really interested (Safran and Thales had declined), the HLD fund, headed by Jean-Bernard Lafonta: only 370 million euros.
Series of targeted acquisitions
Good luck to him. Having become Exosens, the firm embarked on a series of targeted acquisitions to broaden its range outside of defense and in the field of imaging, towards health, industry, nuclear… The return of military investments with the Ukrainian conflict did the rest. Turnover is now growing by 20% to 30% per year. It has doubled since the buyout, and is expected to double again in 2027. The HLD fund will remain in the majority after the IPO, but has already recovered, in terms of valuation, almost three times its investment.
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