Wikipedia
Laverda (Moto Laverda S.A.S. – Dottore Francesco Laverda e fratelli) was an Italian manufacturer of high performance motorcycles. The motorcycles in their day gained a reputation for being robust and innovative.
The Laverda brand was absorbed by Piaggio when, in 2004, Piaggio absorbed Aprilia. Piaggio has elected to quietly close all activities related to the Laverda brand and has publicly stated that they would be willing to sell the rights to the brand if an investor should appear. As of 2015, Laverda.com no longer redirects to Aprilia's website. Currently, laverda.com shows the history of company between 1873 and 2004.
Laverda is a manufacturer of combine harvesters and hay equipment, based in Breganze, Italy. It was founded in 1873 by Pietro Laverda to produce farming implements in the Province of Vicenza. 1956 was the year the first self-propelled Laverda combine, the M 60, was manufactured. Laverda formed a partnership with Fiat in 1981, and would be a part of that company for some 20 years.
The Morra family's holding company, ARGO SpA, bought Laverda in 2000 as Fiat was merging its New Holland Agriculture group with Case IH to form CNH Global. In 2007, ARGO sold 50% of the Laverda business to AGCO, the remaining 50% of the joint venture was eventually sold in 2011 and the Breganze plant became AGCO's European center of excellence for harvesting.