Lockheed to buy satellite products maker Terran in $450 mln deal

Terran Orbital

15/08/2024 19:13

Aug 15 (Reuters) - Lockheed Martin  LMT.N  on Thursday
agreed to acquire satellite products maker Terran Orbital
 LLAP.N  in a $450 million deal, months after the defense
contractor withdrew it previous bid to take it private.
    Lockheed will pay 25 cents per share in cash, representing a
37.5% discount to Terran's last close. The company in March had
offered $1 per Terran share.
    Terran's shares plunged nearly 41% to 24 cents on the New
York Stock Exchange.
    Lockheed, which had invested in Terran's Series A round in
2017, is its largest customer and currently uses the company's
satellite bus for the U.S. Space Development Agency's (SDA)
transport and tracking layer programs.
    "The acquisition consolidates a supplier, with Terran
Orbital providing buses for Lockheed's prime position on the
SDA's Tracking and Transport layer," analysts said in a
Jefferies note.
    Florida-based Terran Orbital is engaged in satellite design,
production, launch planning, mission operations, and on-orbit
support for aerospace and defense clients.
    The transaction, which is expected to close in the fourth
quarter, will retire Terran's existing debt and establish a new
$30 million working capital facility.
    A month back, Terran posted quarterly net loss of $35.4
million, adding to several quarters of losses since going public
in 2022. 
    Earlier this year, Lockheed was awarded $890 million as part
of a $2.55 billion contract along with peers L3Harris
Technologies  LHX.N  and Sierra Space to deliver 18 satellites
to the SDA as part of its missile tracking program. 

 (Reporting by Aatreyee Dasgupta in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju
Samuel)
 ((Aatreyee.Dasgupta@thomsonreuters.com;))