Motorola Solutions is back on the acquisition trail, agreeing a £129 million (€160 million) takeover of ruggedized mobile device maker Psion.
The cash deal values UK-headquartered Psion’s shares at £0.88 each, and will clear the way for Motorola Solutions to tap new territory in the form of the industrial handheld market. The firm plans to incorporate Psion into its Enterprise Mobile Computing business, and predicts the acquisition will add to its earnings within a year of completion.
“Psion is a compelling opportunity to strengthen our…mobile computing portfolio with ruggedized handheld products and vehicle-mount terminals that will deepen our presence in the global markets in which we compete,” says Greg Brown, chairman and chief executive of Motorola Solutions. Psion chairman, John Hawkins, adds the deal provides “certainty in an environment where certainty is in short supply.”
Ratings firm Moody’s gives the deal the thumbs up, noting the purchase is Motorola Solutions’ first for several years. However, the deal doesn’t affect Moody’s Baa2 rating on the firm.
“We expect the company to continue to make disciplined acquisitions to expand their enterprise and government business lines, but do not expect the volume to approach the pre-2008 time period levels when the company bought companies such as Symbol Technologies for $3.5 billion [€2.7 billion],” senior Moody’s analyst Matthew Jones explains.