Spectris spends $475m on US firm Omega Engineering
BRITISH electrical engineering firm Spectris has agreed to buy privately held Omega Engineering for $475m (£291m) to strengthen its industrial controls business.
Surrey-based Spectris, which serves various industries including mining, pharmaceuticals and transport, said it would finance the deal from its existing cash and bank facilities.
Spectris expects the acquisition to add to adjusted earnings per share in the first full financial year of ownership.
Connecticut-based Omega, which makes products used to measure temperature, pressure, humidity and conductivity, had sales of $168m in 2010 and employs around 700 people, Spectris said.
“We expect the acquisition to complete in the fourth quarter on satisfaction of customary closing conditions including US and German antitrust clearances,” Spectris said in a statement.
Spectris’ industrial controls business makes barcode scanner and decoders, as well as digital and analogue panels.
Shares in Spectris closed up 4.3 per cent at £14.07 yesterday, faring better than the broader FTSE 250 index.