CAE Cae Inc

By Dave Sebastian

CAE Inc. has agreed to buy L3Harris Technologies Inc.'s military-training business for $1.05 billion, a move that would expand the Canadian aerospace company's defense business.

The Wall Street Journal on Sunday reported that the two companies were nearing a deal. The acquisition is CAE's fourth announced in the past four months, the company said.

The military-training unit generated about $500 million in revenue in 2020.

The unit comprises Link, which provides military training in the U.S.; Doss Aviation, which provides flight training to the U.S. Air Force; and AMI, which designs and makes simulator hardware. The business will operate under CAE USA, headquartered in Tampa, Fla., after closing, expected in the second half of the year, the companies said Monday.

The companies said they expect the acquisition to add to CAE's per-share earnings by the low-teens percentage in the first full year of closing. The acquisition could generate about $28 million to $35 million in cost savings, the companies said.

The deal value represents about 13.5 times the military-training unit's estimated adjusted 2020 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, the companies said.

The companies said the acquisition will be funded through a private placement of roughly $550 million from two institutional investors: Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and GIC Private Ltd.

Write to Dave Sebastian at dave.sebastian@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 01, 2021 06:37 ET (11:37 GMT)

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