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Bloomberg
Verizon Communications Inc. agreed to buy GPS vehicle-tracking company Fleetmatics Group Plc in an all-cash deal valued at $2.4 billion, vaulting the telephone giant deeper into the automotive-technology market. Verizon will pay $60 a share for the Dublin, Ireland-based company, a 40 percent premium to Fleetmatics’ closing price last week, according to a statement.
With its wireless business slowing, Verizon has been pursuing new sources of growth, such as connected-device subscriptions, video streaming, advertising and mobile-workforce management. In June, Verizon Telematics acquired Telogis Inc., a cloud-based mobile enterprise management software company based in Aliso Viejo, California. That transaction closed last week. Verizon ended June with net debt of $96.9 billion, or 2.2 times adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization. After announcing its deal to buy Yahoo! Inc.’s web assets for $4.83 billion last week, the company said it that by 2019, its credit rating profile will be back to where it was before its 2014 agreement to buy out partner Vodafone Group Plc’s stake in Verizon Wireless.