HP ups enterprise mobility game with Aruba buy

HP will pay $2.7 billion to acquire enterprise mobility vendor Aruba Networks as part of a push to diversify its enterprise network capabilities.

Under the deal, HP will pay $24.67 per share in cash for Aruba Networks and fold the wireless networking vendor into its existing operations.

The acquisition grants HP a company with around 1800 employees. Aruba recorded revenues of $29 million in its most recent financial year and has reported compound annual revenue growth of 30% over the past five years.

HP CEO Meg Whitman said the acquisition is expected to position HP Networking as a leader in the $18 billion campus networking sector and to allow the company to accelerate enterprises’ transition to converged campus networks.

“Enterprises are facing a mobile-first world and are looking for solutions that help them transition legacy investments to the new style of IT,” she said.

“By combining Aruba’s world-class wireless mobility solutions with HP’s leading switching portfolio, HP will offer the simplest, most secure networking solutions to help enterprises easily deploy next-generation mobile networks.”

HP has announced it expects the Aruba acquisition to be earnings-per-share accretive in the first full year following the purchase. Pending approval from regulators and Aruba shareholders, the deal is expected to close in the second half of HP’s financial year 2015, which ends in October.

Image courtesy of Don DeBold under CC