Sweden's Hexagon buys Infor EAM for $2.7 billion, develops ties with Koch

(In July 6 story, corrects value of shares in first bullet point and paragraph 7)

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) -Swedish industrial technology group Hexagon AB said on Tuesday it had acquired cloud technology company Infor's enterprise asset management (EAM) division in a cash and equity deal worth $2.7 billion.

The deal also creates ties between Hexagon and Koch Industries - which owns Infor - through a memorandum of understanding, which will see expanded use of EAM in Koch businesses and cross-selling opportunities between customers.

"Infor EAM is continuously ranked by analysts as a market leader among best-of-breed EAM solutions and is considered by thousands of customers as one of the industry's most compelling solutions," Hexagon CEO Ola Rollen said in a statement.

Infor's EAM is software used by industrial companies to track assets, digitalise maintenance operations and improve digital operations.

Hexagon has transformed itself from a conglomerate to an industrial technology company through a series of acquisitions over the last decade.

Shares in the company were up by just over 2% at 0817 GMT.

The sale comprises $800 million in cash and 132 million shares, worth about $1.95 billion, in the form of shares paid to Koch. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval, would leave Koch owning a stake of almost 5% in Hexagon.

Infor EAM's expected revenue for 2021 is $184 million, Hexagon said, adding that the business had been growing at a compound rate of 35% in the last three years.

Hexagon said it expected the acquisition would generate it additional sales worth $100 million by 2026.

"Adding an enterprise asset management system to our portfolio puts us in a unique position to drive further digital transformation across our customer base," Rollen added.

(Reporting by Colm Fulton; editing by Niklas Pollard, editing by Louise Heavens)