In its biggest acquisition deal ever, Digi International Inc. has agreed to pay $140 million for a critical IT infrastructure company whose customers include Target, Best Buy and Netflix.
"Opengear and Digi share a lot of DNA, we've competed against each other, we have employees that used to work at Opengear," said Ron Konezny, president and chief executive of Digi International in an interview. "The good news is it wasn't a new name."
Digi is a Hopkins-based wireless-communication company that provides internet of things connectivity products and solutions and had annual revenue of $228 million for its fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2018. The company is expected to announce its fourth-quarter and year-end results Nov. 14.
Opengear was founded in 2004, and its software and appliances help customers manage data centers and remote networks.
Through the first three quarters of 2019, Opengear had revenue of $41.9 million and net income of $13.7 million.
"Digi and Opengear will mesh well as we share so many of the same values in how we treat our customers and employees," said Opengear CEO Gary Marks in a news release. "Our products are complementary, so customers and partners will get exceptional choice."
Opengear's customers include 75 of the top Fortune 100 companies. The company has 136 employees and has research and development offices in Silicon Valley and Brisbane, Australia, with its main office in Sandy, Utah.
This is the sixth and largest acquisition by Digi under Konezny's leadership, and he said that past success in acquiring and integrating other companies was critical background when it came time to acquire Opengear.