Global IT Service player CSC to acquire ASX listed Australian IT giant UXC

Global IT services provider CSC has expressed interest in acquiring ASX-listed UXC. The tentative deal price would be AU$1.26 per share for UXC's 340 million outstanding shares. Cumulatively, the approximate purchase price will be AU$428 million.

The Australian company has positively responded to the proposal and said the deal would be subject to several conditions, including due diligence to CSC's satisfaction, scheme of arrangement, board and regulatory approvals. The transaction is expected to conclude by February 2016.

The UXC Ltd is an AU$480 million IT application, infrastructure and consulting firm and employs about 3,000-employees. It belongs to the top one percent of Microsoft Dynamics resellers worldwide.

UXC business

The operations of UXC are spread in three business groups. The enterprise application is focused on strategy and design, project management, testing and application support; IT infrastructure group operates in cloud, data center, enterprise mobility and managed services; the consulting wing focuses on research, analytics, communication and cyber-security.

The UXC Group is an amalgam of 12 companies and includes UXC Connect, UXC Oxygen, UXC Eclipse, UXC Consulting and Telsyte.

In Australia, UXC has a big profile as an independent and publicly owned IT service company with its high focus on private and public sectors across Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA and Asia. In fiscal 2015, UXC reported annual revenues of AU$686 million, ARN Net reported.

Testament of strength

“The proposal from CSC recognises the potential of UXC and is a testament to the strong business we have built; the board of UXC is supportive of this move," said Cris Nicolli, managing director of UXC.

Nicolli said the combined strength of CSC-UXC would be among the region's largest IT services companies, based on revenues.

For CSC, this will be a fourth acquisition in the buildup to its November split. The Falls Church, Virginia.-based Company is No. 5 on the CRN Solution Provider 500. By November, CSC's US$8.1 billion (AU$11.20 billion) commercial business will separate from the US$4.1 billion (AU$5.71 billion) public sector business.

Mike Lawrie, CEO of CSC said in August that the company’s commercial business is on the lookout for an array of acquisition opportunities to move from legacy projects such as ERP installations to involve more in the next-generation cloud and big-data offerings, reported CRN News.

For feedback/comments, contact the writer at feedback@ibtimes.com.au or let us know what you think below.