Donnelley agrees Moore Wallis acquisition

Chicago-based printing giant R.R. Donnelley and Sons has agreed to acquire Moore Wallace Inc. for $2.8 billion in stock.

The merger will create an $8 billion-a-year printing conglomerate that Donnelley claims would rank as the largest in North America. However, this will still only account for about five per cent of the fragmented $160 billion-a-year commercial-printing industry.

Moore Wallace chief executive Mark Angelson will succeed Donnelley chairman and chief executive William Davis, who intends to retire.

For Donnelley, the acquisition offers substantial instant growth and the combined company will generate cost savings of at least $100 million on a year in the first 12 to 24 months following the closing of the acquisition. These savings are expected to come from the elimination of duplicative administrative and infrastructure costs and reduction in procurement expenses. The combined company will employ about 50,000 individuals.

‘There will be some job losses, but there shouldn’t be anything dramatic,’ says Angelson.