Business in the Burbs » Acquisitions

Snap!VRS is buying competitor in telecom industry

Jay Loomis — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 20:34:23 +0000

Snap!VRS, a Pearl River-based company that focuses on telecommuications services for the deaf, is buying Viable Communications Inc., another company in the same industry.

Viable, based in Rockville, Md., specializes in videoconferencing hardware and software, video relay services, and interpreting services for the deaf community. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. “Pairing our respective synergies will create a company capable of servicing the deaf community unlike any other,” said Snap!VRS President Tom Kielty.

PepsiCo buys Brazilian maker of coconut water

Jay Loomis — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 16:58:34 +0000

PepsiCo Inc., the Purchase-based beverage and snack food giant, is buying Brazil’s largest coconut water company as it looks to expand its business in one of the world’s fastest growing markets.

The acquisition of Amacoco Nordeste Ltda. and Amacoco Sudeste Ltda. also marks another step in PepsiCo’s ongoing efforts to capture additional customers by broadening its beverage portfolio into new categories.

PepsiCo’ food and beverage lineup already includes 18 different product lines that each generate more than $1 billion in annual sales. Executives see promise in adding coconut water to a product mix that also includes soft drinks, Gatorade sports drinks and Tropicana orange juice because coconut water is a popular beverage in Brazil and other countries.

Amacoco makes and sells Kero Coco and Trop Coco, Brazil’s top-selling coconut water brands.

“Amacoco will complement our current business and enhance our growth prospects throughout Latin America and beyond,” Massimo d’Amore, chief executive officer of PepsiCo Americas Beverages, said in a written statement. “Even in the nascent U.S. market, coconut water sales are enjoying extraordinary growth.”

PepsiCo touts coconut water as a good source of nutrients that “contains calcium and magnesium, and the same amount of heart healthy potassium as a banana or a glass of orange juice.”

PepsiCo gains contracts with coconut water suupliers and takes over two Brazilian factories as part of the acquisition. The company added that it hopes to expand sales in Brazil and other countries by building on the strength of its own distribution system and a network of independent distributors that currently distribute Kero Coco and Trop Coco.

The acquisition, which must be approved by Brazilian regulators, follows other investments that PepsiCo has made in Latin America. Those include buyouts of of Brazilian snack company Comercio de Doces Lucky Ltda. and the Peruvian snack business Karinto S.A.C.

“Within the last year, PepsiCo has announced plans to invest more than $3.3 billion in Latin America over the next several years,” said Luis Montoya, president of Latin America Beverages for PepsiCo.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Broadview Networks buying assets from Canadian company

Jay Loomis — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 20:02:23 +0000

Broadview Networks, a Rye Brook-based business communications provider, said that it agreed to buy select assets of Natural Convergence Inc., an Internet phone company based in Ottawa, Canada.

The agreement calls for Broadview Networks to acquire the software for Natural Convergence’s Silhouette, the technology behind Broadview’s OfficeSuite Internet phone product. Broadview Networks also is buying hardware, inventory and intellectual property held by Natural Convergence, including patents and trademarks and service marks.

Starwood sells San Francisco hotel for $90 million

Jay Loomis — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 18:55:10 +0000

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. of White Plains said that it sold its W hotel in San Francisco to Keck Seng Investments Limited in Hong Kong for $90 million. Starwood, whose network includes nearly 1,000 hotels in 100 countries, said that it also agreed to a management contract to continue operating the San Francisco hotel as a W.

AFP Imaging sells unit to Italian company

Jay Loomis — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 18:45:23 +0000

AFP Imaging Corp., an Elmsford-based supplier of medical imaging systems, said that it sold its Italian Quantitative Radiology subsidiary to Cefla Capital Services SpA in a stock transaction.

Cefla’s dental group, based in Imola, Italy, is a major manufacturer of dental equipment. AFP said that it will use the proceeds from the sale to reduce debt, increase working capital and better position the company for expansion. Financial terms of the sale were not disclosed.

IBM to buy software company for $1.2 billion

Jay Loomis — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 18:42:22 +0000

IBM Corp. said that it will pay $1.2 billion to buy SPSS Inc., a Chicago-based technology company that makes software to help companies analyze data and identify business trends.

The buyout values SPSS, a publicly traded company, at $50 a share, or more than 42 percent above Monday’s closing price of $35.09. In trading yesterday on the Nasdaq Stock Market, shares of SPSS soared $14.29 to $49.38.

Shares of IBM dropped 65 cents to $116.98 on the New York Stock Exchange.

The acquisition is expected to be completed before the end of the year if it receives shareholder and regulatory approvals.

The all-cash buyout expands IBM’s presence in the market for business analytics software that is designed to help companies develop a competitive advantage through the smart use of information that can help control costs, increase efficiency and boost profitability.

The global market for such software is expected to increase 4 percent this year to $25 billion this year, according to IDC.

“With this acquisition, we are extending our capabilities around a new level of analytics that not only provides clients with greater insight—but true foresight,” said Ambuj Goyal, IBM’s general manager for information management.

IBM said that the addition of SPSS will allow it to offer products that are targeted at meeting the needs of major industries, including customer retention for financial services, patient care improvement data in the healthcare industry, crime prevention for the public sector and scouting site locations for retailers and manufacturers.

“This technology has also been used in political campaigns to zero in on likely voters to determine what campaign messages have the greatest impact on undecided voters,” IBM said in a written statement.

IBM has made about 80 acquisitions in hardware, software and services since Chief Executive Officer Sam Palmisano took the reins in 2002, according to Bloomberg News. Most of the deals, including the $4.5 billion purchase of Cognos Inc., have increased the scale of IBM’s software business.

In a second acquistion announced yesterday, IBM said that it bought Ounce Labs, Inc., a privately-held company in Waltham, Mass. Ounce makes software that helps companies reduce the costs related to security and compliance concerns. Financial terms of this buyout were not disclosed.

Pepsi Bottling Group completes acquisition

Jay Loomis — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 17:26:52 +0000

Pepsi Bottling Group Inc. of Somers said that it has completed its acquisition of Pepsi-Cola Bottlers for the Merrimack Valley Inc. The Haverhill, Mass.-based company is a Pepsi-Cola franchised bottler serving northeastern Massachusetts. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The acquisition was originally announced on May 14.

Visant expands product lineup through acquisition

Jay Loomis — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 17:07:45 +0000

Visant Corp., an Armonk-based marketer of class rings and high school graduation products, said that it has completed an acquisition of Rennoc Corp.’s team outerwear business. The deal gives Visant an expanded product lineup that will include school award letter jackets and team apparel. The Rennoc products will be marketed and sold primarily through sporting goods dealers. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

SmartPros Ltd. announces acquisition

Jay Loomis — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 20:36:05 +0000

SmartPros Ltd., a Hawthorne-based provider of professional education and corporate training, said that it has purchased Executive Enterprise Institute, a provider of live conferences and seminars for corporate finance, tax and legal industry professionals. The newly acquired business will operate as SmartPros’ EEI Division in Hawthorne. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

Mercury Solar Systems buys Long Island solar company

Jay Loomis — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 16:23:54 +0000

Mercury Solar Systems, a New Rochelle-based company that installs solar electrical systems, has expanded its presence in the region with the acquisition of K-Star Solar, a major residential solar installer on Long Island.

Mercury’s expansion comes at a time when solar energy companies are expected to benefit from the incentives for renewable energy development in the $787 billion economic stimulus legislation passed by Congress and signed by President Barack Obama earlier this year.

Mercury, already a major player in the Northeast, has installed hundreds of solar systems in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.

K-Star Solar will be renamed Mercury Solar Systems after the acquisition is completed. Kevin P. Harvey, K-Star’s president, will join Mercury’s Long Island team as its divisional president and focus on Mercury’s Long Island installations.

“With K-Star we have an instant footprint in this market and we believe together we can offer commercial and residential customers cutting edge, highly efficient solar solutions at affordable prices,” said Jared Haines, president of Mercury Solar Systems. “The federal and state incentives for solar systems have also never been better, but customers need a company with local knowledge to help them leverage the benefits of solar.”

Nationally, the solar energy industry has steadily grown during the past 10 years. The number of companies shipping solar thermal collectors climbed from 28 to 60 from 1998 to 2007, according to the Energy Information Administration. The number of units shipped rose from 7,756 to 15,153 over the same time period.