LANDesk sold to private equity firm

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The sale of LANDesk will provide new growth opportunities, including possible purchases of other companies that will be folded into the Utah-based software and services company, officials said Monday.

LANDesk, a division of Emerson Electric Co., said Monday it had been sold for an undisclosed price to private equity firm Thoma Bravo with offices in San Francisco and Chicago. Steve Daly, now general manager and executive vice president, will become CEO of the company when the sale closes, probably next month.

"For Utah I think it's a good thing," said Daly. "We have a company that's headquartered in Salt Lake and has great growth prospects, that provides good jobs in software development, sales and marketing."

LANDesk sells software and services to manage and secure companies' computer networks, including personal computers, smart phones and other devices that connect to them. The West Jordan-based company with 350 or so local employees boosts a compound annual growth rate of about 20 percent in revenues for the past eight years.

With its own board and management in a standalone company, LANDesk will be able to shed some of the obstructions inherent in being part of a larger company and continue its growth spurt, Daly said after the sale was announced.

Emerson acquired LANDesk when it purchased Avocent Corp. of Huntsville, Ala., in December of 2009. Avocent had purchased LANDesk in 2006 for $416 million.

Emerson, a computer software and hardware maker, said in February that the LANDesk business unit of Avocent was not a good strategic fit as it put the unit up for sale.

Robert Sayle, vice president of Thoma Bravo, said his company that makes long-term investments using monies from entities such as private and public pension funds and loans, said LANDesk is well-managed and in a good position to keep growing. In accord with its investment strategy, Thoma Bravo already has identified potential companies that could be purchased and folded into LANDesk that will help spur growth, he said.

"We absolutely see some very tangible opportunities in the near term," said Sayle. "We definitely anticipate there will be more we haven't identified yet that will come to fruition over the next 12 to 24 months."

Daly said "a lot of interested suitors" looked at acquiring LANDesk. Thoma Bravo is a good fit because it has a history of acquiring technology companies that grow as standalone entities.

"They have a philosophy they call buy-and-build," said Robert Naegle, public relations manager for LANDesk. "They buy core technologies and then they really accelerate growth by operational efficiency and investment in that company."

Daly said going from being part of a larger company, like Emerson or Avocent Corp. before it, brought inefficiencies and "distractions." As a standalone company, LANDesk can be more focused on its main business and sales, he said.

The company will be hiring in general administrative positions for areas currently performed by Emerson.