Ingram Micro (NYSE: IM) has unveiled plans to bolster its presence in mobility business with the acquisition of US wireless device distributor BrightPoint (Nasdaq: CELL), for $840m.
Ingram reckons the deal will expand its footprint and customer base “in the rapidly growing and strategically important” mobility market.
Ingram Micro president and CEO Alain Monie described BrightPoint as “a great fit” for the company. In a statement he said: “Expanding our presence in the mobility market has been a focus of Ingram Micro and the acquisition of BrightPoint accomplishes this to an extent that would have been challenging to achieve on our own.
“BrightPoint’s offerings are highly complementary to both our logistics and distribution businesses, which will enable us to go to market with the leading portfolio of mobility device lifecycle services and solutions.”
Indianapolis-based BrightPoint posted $5.2bn in revenues, of which nearly $550m was from value-added logistics services, and total gross margin of approximately 7.2 percent of revenues for the 2011 fiscal year. The company employs approximately 4,000 people and operates facilities in 24 countries, with sales in more than 75 countries around the world. BrightPoint serves more than 25,000 B2B customers with over 100,000 points of sale across the globe and handled more than 112m wireless devices in 2011.
“The mobility industry is forecasted to grow faster than other technology sectors, driven in-part by exponential growth in the smartphone and tablet segments due to the ever-increasing demand for access to data anytime, anywhere and on any device,” added Ingram Micro chief operating and financial officer Bill Humes. “Additionally the convergence of telecommunications, computing and media is driving strong demand and should lead to cross-sell and up-sell opportunities, as our respective customer bases continue to converge.
“Together we expect to capitalise on this growth and generate benefits for our combined vendors, partners, customers, associates and shareholders greater than either company could on its own."
The transaction requires approval of a majority of BrightPoint's outstanding shares at a special meeting, which is expected to take place in the 2012 third quarter.
