Accenture’s appetite for acquisitions is at an all-time high as the global solution provider powerhouse unveiled its 40th purchase over the past 10 months with the buy of cybersecurity firm Sentor.
Fast-growing Accenture said it plans to spend $4 billion on M&A by the end of its fiscal year, which ends Aug. 31, said CEO Julie Sweet during the company’s quarterly earnings report last week.
“Our level of investment demonstrates how scale, experience and trust matters. Scale in terms of our financial capacity, experience in terms of our track record [in] the successful integration of approximately 200 companies since 2013, and the trust we have earned in the market that attracts leading companies to want to join the Accenture family,” said Sweet. “We’re going to make acquisitions to scale [and] to add new skills and opportunities.”
Accenture recently reported third fiscal quarter revenue of $13.3 billion, up 21 percent year over year. The company also saw a 24 percent increase in operating income to $2.1 billion.
Accenture unveiled its acquisition of Sweden-based Sentor, a provider of cyberdefense and managed security services. Founded in 1998, Sentor offers advisory services, security testing and managed detection and incident response capabilities, all powered by a 24x7x365 Security Operations Center in Stockholm. Its customer base spans industries such as finance, insurance, manufacturing and retail.
Financial terms of the Sentor deal were not disclosed. Sentor’s 80 cybersecurity experts will immediately join the Accenture Security team.
“With the daily barrage of cyberattacks, it’s time for organizations to take a new view on managing cyber risks,” said Kelly Bissell, Accenture global security leader, in a statement on Tuesday. “Securing a business ecosystem can’t be piecemeal; it takes the right talent, investments and technology know-how. The acquisition of Sentor further expands our ability to help clients match this challenging cybersecurity environment.”
Security is a priority for Accenture. The company witnessed double-digit growth in its security business in its third quarter driven by advisory, cyberdefense and managed security services.
Security is also top of mind in Accenture’s massive M&A spree. Just this month, Accenture also acquired Arlington, Va.-based analytics security specialist Novetta, which serves U.S. federal organizations with machine learning, cybersecurity and cloud engineering platforms.
Accenture has roughly 569,000 employees on a global basis serving customers in more than 120 countries.
Sourced From CRN -written by Mark Haranas