Lindsay Corporation announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Elecsys Corporation, a provider of machine-to-machine (M2M) technology solutions and custom electronic systems. 

Elecsys products and services include remote monitoring and wireless communication technologies to connect industrial equipment in harsh and remote environments, integrating field data with enterprise applications and the emerging industrial Internet of Things (IoT). Headquartered in Olathe, KS, and with 135 employees, Elecsys Corporation reported annual revenue of $30.4 million in its latest fiscal year ended April 30, 2014. 

Under the terms of the agreement, Lindsay will acquire Elecsys for $17.50 per share in cash, for a total purchase price of approximately $70.5 million, which includes the cashing out of Elecsys' equity compensation awards. The agreement has been unanimously approved by both the Lindsay and Elecsys boards of directors. 

Upon closing of the transaction, Elecsys will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Lindsay Corporation and will continue to be operated by the company's current management team. The parties are targeting a January 2015 closing, subject to customary conditions, including receipt of Elecsys shareholder approval. 

While Lindsay has sufficient cash on hand to consummate this acquisition, Lindsay expects to take advantage of attractive debt market interest rates in support of this acquisition as it continues to execute on its capital allocation plan. 

"Lindsay is excited to announce the acquisition of Elecsys," stated Rick Parod, Lindsay's president and chief executive officer. "This represents a key strategic addition to Lindsay Corporation's extensive competencies and is important to our long term strategy of leading the market in advanced technologies for managing water use efficiency. 

The Elecsys team has done an excellent job of developing proprietary M2M solutions that are field proven with a strong customer base in water, energy production, agriculture, and transportation. We expect the acquisition to be accretive in the first year."