Livingstone advised Gefran as global M&A advisor on the acquisition of 100% of NOVUS, a Brazilian group specializing in industrial automation solutions. The transaction represents a further step in strengthening Gefran’s international positioning, while expanding its portfolio of products and technologies.
Gefran is an Italian multinational company listed on Euronext STAR Milan, specializing in the design and manufacture of sensors, components, systems and solutions for the automation and control of industrial processes. With approximately 750 employees, the Group operates internationally through 9 production sites and 14 sales subsidiaries, supported by a network of independent distributors active worldwide.
NOVUS is a Brazilian industrial group headquartered in the State of Rio Grande do Sul, active in the development and manufacture of industrial automation solutions. The company offers a diversified portfolio including process controllers, sensors, transmitters, data acquisition systems and Industrial IoT solutions, serving customers across a broad range of industrial sectors both in its domestic market and internationally.
In 2025, NOVUS generated revenues of BRL 98.6 million (approximately €16.4 million) and EBITDA of BRL 20.4 million (approximately €3.4 million). The transaction implies an Enterprise Value of BRL 215 million (approximately €35.8 million).
The acquisition has a strong industrial rationale, underpinned by the complementarity of the two companies’ products, capabilities and geographic footprints, strengthening Gefran’s position in Brazil and Latin America while providing NOVUS with new opportunities for international growth. The significant expected synergies, primarily related to cross-selling, industrial and operational efficiencies and the integration of research and development activities, are also expected, at full run-rate, to reduce the implied transaction multiple compared with the entry multiple.
“With this transaction, we are strengthening our presence in an extremely dynamic market and integrating a company that shares our industrial culture, our passion for innovation and our close focus on customers. NOVUS represents not only growth in Brazil, but an accelerator of Gefran’s global growth,” said Marcello Perini, CEO of the Gefran Group. He continued: “We believe that the combination of the two companies will create value for all stakeholders: for investors, through greater growth opportunities and industrial synergies; for customers, thanks to a broader and more innovative offering; and for our people, through new opportunities for professional and international development. With NOVUS, we are building a global platform that combines industrial excellence, innovation and international presence. Together, we will be stronger, more comprehensive and better positioned to capture the opportunities arising from the digital transformation of global industry.”
“Today, we are announcing much more than an acquisition: we are announcing a new and significant step in Gefran’s international development journey. This is an important transaction that we strongly pursued, fully consistent with our strategy and with the long-term vision that guides the Group’s decisions. For us, growth means strengthening the Group’s quality, competitiveness and wealth of expertise. I am therefore particularly pleased with the result we have achieved: we now enter this new phase with determination, fully aware that what we have accomplished is the result of the work, professionalism and commitment of all the people who contributed to making it possible — a strong and outstanding team,” commented Maria Chiara Franceschetti, Chairwoman of the Gefran Group.
“We are particularly pleased to have once again supported Gefran, a long-standing Livingstone client, on a complex and highly articulated transaction completed as part of a competitive process. The acquisition of NOVUS represents an important strategic transaction for the Group, with a strong industrial rationale, which will enable Gefran to further accelerate its international development by leveraging the significant complementarity between the two businesses in terms of products, capabilities and target markets, as well as the substantial synergies arising from their integration,” said Luca Maccagnani Castelli and Giulia Guzzo, respectively Managing Partner and Partner at Livingstone.
