C.H. Robinson said Monday that it has agreed to buy Freightquote.com, one of the nation's largest Internet freight brokers, for $365 million.
Eden Prairie-based C.H. Robinson, a third-party logistics powerhouse, will pay cash for Kansas City-based Freightquote.com in a deal expected to close in 2015's first quarter, pending regulatory approval.
The acquisition will boost Robinson's ability to connect shippers and transportation providers via the Internet.
"E-commerce is going to be a bigger part of future supply chain services and Freightquote brings us a leading solution in our industry," C.H. Robinson CEO John Wiehoff said in a statement. "Along with a track record of success, Freightquote.com has an established brand [and] a talented management team."
Freightquote.com's business model particularly serves small businesses, in the way a retailer would connect directly with customers on the Web.
Robinson "has had an online presence for years and tons of e-commerce, but [e-commerce] hasn't been a sales model for us," Chris O'Brien, a Robinson senior vice president, told the Star Tribune.
For calendar year 2014, privately held Freightquote.com is expected to generate $124 million in net revenue and operating profits of $34 million. C.H. Robinson had about $1.8 billion in net revenue in its most recently completed fiscal year.
The purchase of Freightquote.com is a significant one for C.H. Robinson, though not as big as its largest deal, the $635 million purchase of Chicago-based Phoenix International in 2012.
