MINNEAPOLIS ? Analysts International Corp., which acquired Auburn Hills-based SequoiaNET.Com several years ago, announced Wednesday it has merged with Computer Horizons Corp. to create a $600 million IT Professional Services firms, one of the largest in the country. The combined companies will be called Computer Horizons.
Computer Horizons will employ about 5,000 billable consultants with 50 offices in 28 states, plus offices in Canada, UK and India, serving clients among the Fortune 1000 and mid-tier marketplaces. It will also have a sizable government practice comprising a variety of federal, state and local government departments and agencies with annual revenues of approximately $65 million. The combined company will be headquartered in Minneapolis.
The company will offer IT professional services, including application management and development, infrastructure support and data management. These services will be delivered through innovative work force solutions, vendor and human capital management services through Chimes, and via a network of domestic, offshore (India) and nearshore (Canada) IT solutions centers.
“Importantly, CHC and Analysts have very little client overlap. In fact, only eight of our top 50 customers are shared by both companies,?? said Computer Horizons Corp.’s CEO William Murphy. ?This highly complementary business combination will allow the combined company to better compete with the industry leaders anywhere in North America. The merger is also expected to result in approximately $15 million in synergy savings, a substantial portion of which relates to public company costs and elimination of duplicative facilities and infrastructure. There are historical similarities to our two companies, both of which had entrepreneurial beginnings almost four decades ago.”
Management of the new company will consist of executives of both companies and be led by a management team consisting of Murphy as CEO and Jeffery Baker (President of Analysts International) as President and COO. The status of Sequoia Founder John Bamberger, who had been COO of Analysts, was not disclosed.
Under terms of the agreement, Analysts shareholders will receive 1.15 shares of Computer Horizons common stock for each share of Analyst International common stock. Current CHC shareholders will own approximately 52 percent of the combined company and current Analyst International shareholders will own approximately 48 percent. The transaction is expected to be accretive to earnings in 2006.
The transaction is subject to the approval of the respective shareholders of each company and is also subject to appropriate regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. The Boards of Directors of both CHC and Analysts have unanimously approved the proposed merger. Both companies will hold special shareholders meetings regarding the proposed merger as soon as practical, after regulatory review.
