The Best and Worst Performing Security Stocks of 2021
On the whole, publicly traded electronic security and cybersecurity firms performed well in 2021, despite global economic hardship. Learn more in SSI’s annual summary of security industry stocks.
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2021 M&A OVERVIEW
Transaction activity throughout the physical and cybersecurity space remained robust throughout 2021. The following highlights some of 2021’s notable deals by sector.
Physical Security
▶ Openpath Security was acquired by Motorola Solutions for $366 million, furthering Motorola Solutions’ access solutions combining hardware and software focusing on smartphone or smart device access to physical locations.
▶ Motorola Solutions acquired Envysion, a provider of enterprise video security and business analytics solutions to the quick-service restaurant and retail industries for $124 million. The purchase is one of many rapidly growing number of video surveillance acquisitions made by Motorola Solutions as it looks to solidify its position as one of the industry’s largest vendors.
▶ AFA Protective Systems was acquired by Corbett Technology Solutions (CTSI) for $138 million. AFA Protective Systems, together with its subsidiaries, installs, operates, maintains and sells protective systems to safeguard life and property from various hazards primarily in the eastern U.S.
▶ Fire Alarm Services was acquired by Pye-Barker Fire & Safety for $55 million in March 2021. Fire Alarm Services offers fire protection, fire alarm installation, repair, monitoring and testing services in the Colorado area and continues to bolster Pye-Barker’s leading fire protection offerings.
▶ Allied Universal succeeded in its takeover bid of G4S after about 79% of the London-based security services provider’s shareholders approved the $5.28 billion transaction.
▶ FLIR Systems and Teledyne Technologies jointly announced they had entered into a definitive agreement under which Teledyne would acquire FLIR in a cash and stock transaction valued at approximately $8 billion.
▶ ASSA ABLOY acquired the Hardware and Home Improvement (HHI) division of Spectrum Brands for $4.3 billion. HHI has a varied portfolio of products, including patented SmartKey technology and electronic, smart and biometric locks from brands such as Kwikset, Baldwin, Weiser, Pfister and National Hardware.
▶ Stanley Black & Decker signed a definitive agreement to sell its systems integration unit, Stanley Security, to Securitas AB for $3.2 billion in cash.
▶ Evolv Technology and special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) NewHold Investment Corp. entered into a $1.7 billion definitive merger agreement in March to make Evolv a publicly traded company.
Cybersecurity
▶ Thoma Bravo acquired Proofpoint for $12.4 billion, representing the largest Cloud software purchase in history. Proofpoint operates as a SaaS provider, offering sophisticated protection against advanced and targeted cybersecurity threats, recently passing $1 billion in annual revenue.
▶ CDW acquired Sirius Computer Solutions for $2.5 billion, creating one of the largest IT solutions organizations in the world. This expands the reach of CDW and continues to accelerate the solutions available to CDW’s expansive customer base.
▶ Peraton Corp., a leading provider of IT services to federal government agencies, acquired Perspecta for $6.8 billion through its financial sponsor Veritas Capital. Given Perspecta’s deep knowledge and end to end technology service offerings in the defense, intelligence and civilian markets, the acquisition will increase the depth of offerings as well as expand the customer base outside the government sector.
▶ SentinelOne went public on the NYSE, raising $1.2 billion and valuing the business at $9 billion. SentinelOne is a provider of AI-enabled prevention, detection, response and hunting across endpoints, containers, Cloud workloads and IoT devices in a single autonomous XDR platform.
▶ Symphony Technology Group through subsidiary McAfee Enterprises acquired the product business of FireEye for $1.2 billion, creating one of the largest pure-play enterprise cybersecurity companies in the world. The combined company will be focused on the extended detection and response (XDR) and secure access service edge (SASE) technologies.
▶ Francisco Partners acquired Forcepoint from Raytheon for $1.1 billion. Forcepoint offers a leading portfolio of cybersecurity solutions that help enterprises worldwide monitor and protect networks, endpoints, data, and users. The company’s behavior-based solutions adapt to risk in real-time and are delivered through a Cloud-native security platform that protects network users and Cloud access, prevents confidential data from leaving the corporate network, and eliminates breaches caused by insiders.
▶ IronNet went public via a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) on the NYSE, valuing the company at $927 million. The company has developed a collective defense solution that delivers machine-speed visibility of potential threat campaigns targeting participating industry peers, as well as a suite of technologies providing real-time threat monitoring and analytics.
Thomas McConnell is a Managing Director of investment banking firm Capstone Headwaters where he focuses on mergers, acquisitions and capital raise transactions in the physical and cybersecurity industries. Patrick Hashmall serves as an M&A Associate at the company.
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