John Petersen submits:

Monday morning a reader sent me a link to a December 23rd press release announcing that the OM Group, Inc. (OMG) had agreed to buy EaglePicher Technologies LLC, a well regarded name in the battery industry, for 1.9 million, or roughly 1.4x sales. While I overlooked the release during the build-up to Christmas, the transaction is important because it provides a current bright-line reference point for energy storage investors on the difficult question, "what is a battery company worth?"

EaglePicher was previously a unit of Eagle Picher Holdings, a public company that filed a voluntary petition under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in April 2005. While I can’t find detailed disclosures on the reorganized company’s lines of business and profitability, EaglePicher’s website describes a variety of battery chemistries ranging from lead-acid to lithium-ion. The company’s press release indicates that approximately 60% of revenue comes from its defense business, 31% comes from its aerospace business and the balance comes from medical and commercial battery systems. The EaglePicher acquisition seems to be a logical step in OMG’s vertical integration and diversification strategy.

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