Solera Holdings, Inc. Completes the Acquisition of DMEautomotive, LLC, Extending its Leadership in Service, Maintenance and Repair

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Jun 04, 2015, 09:00 ET

WESTLAKE, Texas, June 4, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Solera Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SLH), a leading provider of risk and asset management software and services to the automotive and property marketplace, including the global P&C insurance industry, today announced that it has completed the acquisition of DMEautomotive, LLC ("DMEa"), a leader in data-driven customer retention and marketing solutions for the retail automotive industry.

The addition of DMEa to Solera's existing service, maintenance and repair ("SMR") data will create cognitive insights that significantly enhance the SMR experience for 40% of U.S. households, including nearly 100 million unique owner-vehicle relationships.

In less than two years, Solera has created a comprehensive SMR platform, including Indentifix, AutoPoint and Service Dynamics, that serves more than one million SMR events per week and is utilized by nearly a quarter-million auto technicians in the U.S. and Canada.

"I thank JM Family Enterprises for selecting Solera as the new home for DMEa and express our deep commitment to continue building the business," said Tony Aquila, Solera's founder, Chairman and CEO. "Now that the DMEa acquisition is complete, we will work to integrate vertical contact points with customer insights to create a user experience - similar to what Netflix, Amazon and YouTube do - in the automobile lifecycle to provide a knowledgeable and smoother ride through life."

The DMEa purchase price was $142.5 million, subject to certain adjustments. As of the three months ended April 30, 2015, DMEa's annualized run-rate revenue and adjusted EBITDA were approximately $65 million and $12 million, respectively. By adopting the Solera-way, we expect DMEa to achieve potential run-rate synergies of nearly $6 million within the first year. These synergies will position DMEa to achieve Solera-like operating margins, create product innovation and strategically address the market.

About Solera
Solera is a leading provider of risk and asset management software and services to the automotive and property marketplace, including the global P&C insurance industry. Solera is active in over 75 countries across six continents. The Solera companies include: Audatex in the United States, Canada, and in more than 45 additional countries; HPI, CarweB and CAP Automotive in the United Kingdom; Informex in Belgium and Greece; Sidexa in France; ABZ and Market Scan in the Netherlands; Hollander serving the North American recycling market; AUTOonline providing salvage disposition in a number of European and Latin American countries; IMS providing medical review services; Explore providing data and analytics to United States property and casualty insurers; Service Repair Solutions, a joint venture with Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, that provides solutions for the service, maintenance and repair market; and I&S, a provider of software and business management tools, third-party claims administration, first notice of loss and network management services to the U.S. auto and property repair industries, specializing in glass claims. For more information, please refer to the Solera's website at http://www.solerainc.com

Cautions about Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements about: the benefits of the acquisition of DMEa (the "Acquisition"), including the expansion of our SMR platform and "digital garage" strategies to provide products and services throughout the vehicle lifecycle and to the household; the benefits and value of products and services to Solera's and DMEa's customers, either alone or in conjunction with the products and services of other Solera group companies; the identification and expected realization of nearly $6.0 million in run-rate synergies for the first year of our ownership of DMEa; and our ability to apply our Solera-way principles to improve DMEa's profitability, create product innovation and strategically address the market. These statements are based on our current expectations, estimates and assumptions and are subject to many risks, uncertainties and unknown future events that could cause actual results to differ materially. Actual results may differ materially from those set forth in this press release due to the risks and uncertainties inherent in transactions of this nature, our business and DMEa's business, including, without limitation: the failure to realize the expected benefits (including synergies) of the Acquisition; risks associated with and possible negative consequences of acquisitions, investments, joint ventures and similar transactions; successfully integrating DMEa's solutions with or into other Solera group offerings, including but not limited to, Identifix, AutoPoint and Service Dynamics; continued adoption of DMEa's and the Solera group's products and services; the failure to achieve DMEa margin improvements through the application of our Solera-way principles; the effects of competition on product and service pricing and DMEa's and the Solera group's business; our ability to obtain additional financing as necessary to support our business or operations; rapid technology changes in our industry; and effects of security breaches on our business and reputation. For a discussion of these and other factors that could impact our operations or financial results and cause our results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements, please refer to our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, particularly our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2015. Solera is under no obligation to (and specifically disclaims any such obligation to) update or alter its forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. When we refer to run-rate synergies in this press release, we mean benefits or savings to be realized over each twelve month period following the execution of these efforts.

SOURCE Solera Holdings, Inc.