Securitas to Buy Stanley Black & Decker Electronic Security Business for $3.2 Billion
The transaction includes Stanley Black & Decker’s Commercial Electronic and Healthcare Security business lines.
(Photo: tang90246, Adobe Stock)
STOCKHOLM, Sweden — In its biggest acquisition to date, Sweden-based Securitas, the world’s largest security services group, has agreed to buy U.S. rival Stanley Black & Decker’s electronic security solutions business for $3.2 billion in cash.
Yahoo Finance reports Securitas, which offers services like guards, alarm surveillance and airport security, has been pushing for years to increase sales of electronic security services and reduce its exposure to staff-intensive guarding. The firm’s biggest cost is salaries for its 355,000 employees.
With the deal, Securitas will buy back a business that Stanley Black & Decker bought in 2011. The transaction includes Stanley Black & Decker’s Commercial Electronic and Healthcare Security business lines. It does not include Stanley Access Technologies, which offers automatic door solutions.
“The future of security is built around the combination of global presence, connected technology and intelligent use of data and, together with Stanley Security, Securitas is perfectly placed to win in this environment,” Securitas said in a statement.
Securitas CEO Magnus Ahlqvist said the acquisition means “the profile of Securitas changes from a leading guarding company with electronic security and solutions capabilities, to a leading intelligent security solutions partner.”
The transaction is expected to be completed in the first half of 2022 with acquisition-related costs totally around $135 million — the majority of which would be booked in 2022 and 2023.
“The acquisition has significant commercial synergies and creates compelling cost synergies which are expected to be fully realized within three years from completion,” the company said.
The deal will be funded through an underwritten bridge facility and a $915 million equity rights issue intended to be launched following the completion of the deal.
Stanley Black & Decker said the sale was part of a strategy to sharpen its focus on core businesses and that it would use proceeds to partly fund a $4 billion share repurchase in 2022.
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