Select Staffing to be acquired by Atlas Acquisition for stock worth about $245M

Select Staffing agrees to be acquired

HOBE SOUND, Fla. — Temporary employment services company Select Staffing has agreed to be acquired by buyout vehicle Atlas Acquisition Holding Corp. for stock worth about $245 million, the companies said Friday.

The privately held Select Staffing, based in Santa Barbara, Calif., provides temporary staffing and employment to companies in the United States. It had revenue of $1.4 billion in 2008.

Atlas is a special purpose acquisition company formed in 2008 to buy an operating business. It had $200 million of assets held in trust as of Sept. 30. It is based in Hobe Sound, Fla.

Shareholders of both companies must approve the deal. Select Staffing’s current management team is expected to stay on following the closing. The combined company will be named Select Staffing Inc.

Under the terms of the transaction, Select Staffing shareholders will get about 24.7 million shares of Atlas, or 42.5 percent of the combined company.

At Friday’s midday price of $9.94 for Atlas shares, the stock would be worth $245.5 million.

An additional 13.4 percent of the combined company will go to Select Staffing second lien holders. Select Staffing will retire $200 million in debt as part of the transaction.

Atlas shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange’s Amex exchange. The companies said they planned to apply to move shares of the combined company to the NYSE.

Select Staffing said it operates through a network of 202 company-owned and 153 franchise agent offices in 45 states.