TransDigm Group Inc. [TDG] on Tuesday said it has agreed to acquire Cobham Aero Connectivity (CAC) for $965 million in cash, giving it a range of proprietary antenna and radio products for the aerospace market.
CAC is part of Britain’s Cobham, which is owned by the private equity firm
Advent International.
The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021 pending regulatory approvals. The $965 million deal value includes tax benefits.
CAC expects about $225 million in sales in 2020, with nearly 60 percent of the revenue from international customers. The company’s products are on range of defense and commercial platforms covering helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft.
CAC’s customers include Airbus, Boeing [BA], Raytheon Technologies [RTX], Leonardo’s AgustaWestland, and Israel’s Elbit Systems [ESLT].
CAC has about 760 employees and operates from two primary facilities in the United Kingdom and Arizona.
“This business fits well with our long-standing strategy,” W. Nicholas Howley, TransDigm’s executive chairman, said in a statement. “The CAC products are almost all proprietary and over 70 percent of CAC’s revenue comes from the aftermarket. The company is primarily a defense business.”
TransDigm also reviewing potential divestitures of operating units it acquired in 2019 as part of its acquisition of Esterline Technologies. These units mainly serve the defense market and have combined sales of $250 million to $300 million.
Earlier this month, TransDigm sold the AVISTA business unit to Belcan, LLC. AVISTA, which was part of Esterline, has about 100 employees and provides safety and mission critical software engineering services for the aerospace and defense markets.
Howley said the businesses being divested “do not fit as well with our long-standing proprietary and aftermarket strategy.”