Norcros shares lift as it buys out privately owned furnishings supplier

Norcros has bought Hampshire-based private firm Croydex for £21.9m, the company said in an announcement.Shares in the bathroom supplier were up 5.32% following the announcement, at 19.09p at 09:08 on Thursday.The deal, funded by debt through existing facilities included £20.8m settled in cash and £1.1m consideration deferred for three years.In a statement, Norcros' board said it expected the transaction to be earnings enhancing immediately.Croydex managing director will stay on to lead the business, and has a long term incentive scheme in place.Numis said the deal was 'attractive' and reiterated its 'buy' recommendation and target price of 30p.Analysts said the acquisition would enhance 2016 earnings by 14%, and 2017 earnings by 14%."There is scope for additional bolt-on acquisitions once Croydex has been integrated and management has reiterated that the pipeline remains strong," Numis said in a note.