News / Questions raised over operator valuations after Toll and APL Logistics takeovers

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Questions are being raised on company valuations in the industry after two large merger and acquisition (M&A) deals were announced last week.

In both Japan Post’s $5.1bn takeover of Australia’s Toll Group and Kintetsu World Express’s $1.2bn purchase of APL Logistics from its Singapore parent NOL, the price-to-earnings multiple suddenly jumped around 50% in the space of a week.

This left some to ask whether the industry had entered a new era of valuations.

Both deals saw a price-to-earnings multiple of 15, compared ...