EVERETT – Fluke Corp. has agreed to buy a Maryland-based maker of computer network software for $75 million.
Visual Networks Inc. will become part of Fluke Networks, the spinoff of Everett-based Fluke that focuses on testing and monitoring tools for network engineers and technicians.
“They provide complementary solutions to what Fluke Networks does,” Dan Wright, local spokesman for Fluke Networks, said of Visual Networks.
Chris Odell, Fluke Networks’ president, said in a statement that combining the companies will broaden his company’s product lines and market area.
Wright said there are no plans to move Visual Networks, which generated nearly $53 million in revenue in 2004, from its Rockville, Md., headquarters after the acquisition is completed. The merger is subject to shareholder and regulatory approval.
Fluke will pay about $1.83 a share for Visual Networks. Its stock closed trading Friday at $1.75, up noticeably from Thursday’s close of $1.46.
Fluke Networks, which employs about 600 people, was spun off from Fluke in 2000. Since then, it has grown rapidly through expanding sales and by acquiring several other companies.
Fluke and Fluke Networks are both owned by Danaher Corp. of Washington, D.C.
Reporter Eric Fetters: 425-339-3453 or fetters@heraldnet.com.
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