Zebra Technologies Corp. on Tuesday said it has agreed to buy
Motorola Solutions Inc.'s enterprise business for $3.45 billion in
cash.
The deal represents a large expansion for Zebra as the
barcode-printing and asset-tracking company looks to strengthen its
presence in retail, logistics, transportation and manufacturing,
while broadening its geographic reach.
"This acquisition will transform Zebra into a leading provider
of solutions that deliver greater intelligence and insights into
our customers' enterprises and extended value chains," Zebra Chief
Executive Anders Gustafsson said. "The enterprise business will
generate significant value for our shareholders by driving further
product innovation and deeper engagement with our customers and
partners."
Motorola Solutions had pro forma revenue of $2.5 billion last
year, while Zebra had $1 billion in sales, the companies said.
Zebra also expects to add about 4,500 employees after the deal is
completed.
Motorola Solutions became a stand-alone business in 2011 after
splitting from Motorola Mobility Inc., which was later bought by
Google Inc. for $12.5 billion. The company will now focus more on
its government and public safety communications operations, it
said.
"This transaction will enable us to further sharpen our
strategic focus on providing mission-critical solutions for our
government and public safety customers," Motorola Solutions
Chairman and CEO Greg Brown said. "Upon closing of the transaction,
we intend to return the proceeds to our shareholders in a timely
fashion."
Motorola Solutions separately said it lowered its revenue
forecast for the first quarter because of soft demand in its North
American government business, along with enterprise sales that came
in under expectations. The company now sees a top line of about
$1.8 billion, down about $500 million from the low end of its
previous guidance.
Zebra raised its guidance for the first quarter, saying it
expects per-share profit of 88 cents to 91 cents, excluding nine
cents a share in acquisition expenses, and $287 million to $289
million in revenue. The company had previously projected a range of
77 cents a share to 87 cents a share in earnings and $276 million
to $286 million in revenue.
Write to Michael Calia at michael.calia@wsj.com
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