US-Based Malibu Boats Acquires Finland's Saxdor Yachts for About €150 Million

Malibu Boats, Inc., the Nasdaq-listed US manufacturer of recreational powerboats, has acquired Saxdor Yachts, a Finnish builder of premium adventure dayboats. The deal was announced and closed on March 2, 2026. The price was about €150 million, or US$175 million, around 7.2 times estimated EBITDA. Malibu paid about €110 million in cash and €40 million in stock. The agreement includes an earn-out of up to €72 million, tied to operating and financial targets. Wells Fargo was Malibu's exclusive financial advisor and Baker McKenzie its legal counsel. D.A. Davidson MCF International and Clairfield International were financial advisors to Saxdor's shareholders, and Bird & Bird legal counsel.

Malibu is based in Loudon, Tennessee, and trades under the ticker MBUU. It reported net sales of US$914.6 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2026, and has about 3,000 employees and nine brands. Saxdor was founded in Helsinki in 2019 by designer Sakari Mattila. At the time of the deal, it had delivered more than 2,000 boats and employed more than 800 people across facilities in Finland and Poland. Revenue grew about 65% in 2025, with around half of sales in Europe and a third in North America.

The transaction establishes a global platform for Malibu, with scalable European operations and a rapidly expanding dealer network of more than 100 locations in over 50 countries. It fills strategic whitespace between Cobalt and Pursuit in a premium dayboat category estimated at US$2.5 billion and growing about 15% a year. It also advances the "build, innovate and grow" strategy Malibu outlined in 2025. Saxdor remains a subsidiary with its own brand identity and operational autonomy. From the acquisition to June 30, 2026, it contributed US$84.3 million in net sales. The company expects to complete its first domestically built Saxdor boats at its Fort Pierce, Florida facility in the first half of fiscal 2027.