BY Fraser Tennant
In a deal that creates the world’s leading global research and advisory company, Gartner, Inc. has announced its intention to acquire CEB Inc. in a transaction with a total enterprise value of $3.3bn.
The definitive agreement between Gartner, the world's leading information technology research and advisory company, and CEB, the industry leader in providing best practice and talent management insights , will see Gartner acquire all of the outstanding shares of CEB in a cash and stock transaction valued at approximately $2.6bn, which includes Gartner’s assumption of approximately $700m in CEB net debt.
Furthermore, under the terms of the agreement, CEB shareholders will receive $54.00 in cash and 0.2284 shares of Gartner common stock for each share of CEB common stock they own, implying 70 percent cash and 30 percent stock consideration for the offer.
“We are excited about joining forces with CEB, a world-class company we have long admired”, said Gene Hall, chief executive of Gartner. “Our highly complementary business models will create the leading global research and advisory company for all major functions in the enterprise. We look forward to working with CEB’s highly talented teams to leverage our global reach and apply Gartner’s proven operational and sales execution capabilities at scale to accelerate growth across CEB’s businesses.”
The deal will also see Gartner’s existing syndicated research and advisory services being introduced to CEB’s clients in a broad range of functional areas that extend well beyond Gartner’s existing IT, marketing and supply chain roles. In addition, CEB’s best practice and talent management insights will be introduced to Gartner clients worldwide.
“We have long admired Gartner for its impact on clients and track record of growth,” said Tom Monahan, chairman and chief executive of CEB. “We’re pleased to reach this agreement, which offers compelling benefits to CEB shareholders, clients and employees. CEB shareholders will receive substantial and immediate value for their investment while benefiting from the upside and strong growth prospects of the combined company.”
The transaction has been unanimously approved by the boards of both companies and is expected to close in the first half of 2017.
Mr Monahan concluded: “The combined company will have unmatched insight into technology, talent and the other drivers of corporate performance, and we look forward to working with the Gartner team to accelerate our growth and scale our impact on members and clients.”
News: IT Research Firm Gartner Is Buying CEB for $2.6 Billion