Cisco has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Splunk for $157 per share in cash, representing approximately $28 billion in equity value. Upon close of the acquisition, Gary Steele, President and CEO, Splunk, will join Cisco’s executive leadership team reporting to Chuck Robbins, Chair and CEO, Cisco, the companies notified in a joint statement recently.
The partnership of these two leaders in AI, security and observability will help make organisations more secure and resilient.
“We’re excited to bring Cisco and Splunk together. Our combined capabilities will drive the next generation of AI-enabled security and observability. From threat detection and response to threat prediction and prevention, we will help make organisations of all sizes more secure and resilient,” said Robbins in the statement.
Further, according to the statement, in today’s hyper-connected world, data is everywhere, with every organisation relying on it to run their business and make mission-critical decisions every day. Factoring in the acceleration and adoption of generative AI, expanding threat surfaces and multiple cloud environments, it creates a level of complexity that is unlike anything organsations have faced. Organisations need a better way to manage, protect and unlock data’s true value and stay digitally resilient.
“Uniting with Cisco represents the next phase of Splunk’s growth journey, accelerating our mission to help organisations worldwide become more resilient, while delivering immediate and compelling value to our shareholders,” added Steele in the statement.
The acquisition has been unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both the companies. It is expected to close by the end of the third quarter of calendar year 2024, subject to regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions, including approval by Splunk shareholders, the statement concluded.
