Knights Group Holdings plc (LSE:KGH) has agreed to acquire the commercial and private wealth operations of Moore Barlow LLP for £27 million, significantly expanding the legal services group’s footprint across the South East and South Central regions of England.
The transaction will bring approximately 160 additional fee earners into Knights and strengthen its expertise across areas including real estate, private wealth, landed estates, schools and charities. The integration will also involve some consolidation of Moore Barlow’s existing office network.
Acquired operations generated around £30 million of revenue
The £27 million consideration values the acquired business on a cash- and debt-free basis and will be financed using Knights’ existing banking facilities.
The operations being acquired represent approximately 70% of Moore Barlow’s overall revenue and generated around £30 million during the 2026 financial year.
Knights expects the acquisition to increase its scale in some of the UK’s more affluent regional markets, while providing opportunities to use its centralised operating platform to improve the profitability of the acquired business.
Knights targets 18% profit margin after synergies
Through a combination of operational synergies and cost efficiencies, Knights intends to improve the acquired operations’ EBITDA performance and ultimately deliver a profit-before-tax margin of approximately 18%.
Management expects the transaction to be earnings enhancing during its first full financial year following completion.
The acquisition forms part of Knights’ wider strategy of building greater scale in attractive regional legal markets while broadening its commercial and private client capabilities.
Despite funding the deal through existing borrowing facilities, Knights expects leverage to remain at approximately 1.5 times net debt to EBITDA.
Cash generation and share price momentum support outlook
Knights’ broader outlook benefits from solid cash-flow generation and positive technical momentum, with the shares trading above major moving averages and the MACD remaining positive.
These strengths are balanced by elevated balance-sheet leverage and a high price-to-earnings valuation. Both factors increase the importance of successfully integrating the Moore Barlow operations and delivering the anticipated improvements in profitability.
More about Knights Group Holdings plc
Knights Group Holdings plc is a UK legal and professional services company providing commercial and private client advice to businesses and individuals.
The group has particular expertise in areas including real estate, private wealth and landed estates and has pursued expansion across regional growth markets such as the South East and South Central of England. Its operating model uses a centralised support platform to build scale, generate efficiencies and improve profitability as the business expands.
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