PTC
PTC
recently acquired cloud-based field service management (FSM) software company – ServiceMax. PTC has paid $1.46 billion for the acquisition, as mentioned at the time of
announcement
of the acquisition.
ServiceMax provides FSM services built on the Salesforce platform which includes all information pertaining to serviced products like description, serial number, service history and scheduling and dispatching technicians etc.
The integration of ServiceMax is expected to strengthen PTC’s closed loop product lifecycle management (PLM) solutions by providing enterprise asset management and FSM companies with monitoring and servicing product record after the product moves into customer use, added the company.
The complete service history provided by ServiceMax, along with detailed usage information from PTC’s Internet of Things solutions will complement the full digital product definition from PTC’s computer-aided design and PLM solutions.
Since 2015, PTC and ServiceMax have collaborated numerous times to offer field service to producers of complicated, highly customized goods for the aerospace, industrial products, medical device and related sectors.
A Look at PTC’s Recent Strategic Acquisitions
Strategic acquisitions have played a pivotal role in developing the company’s business in the last few years. In May 2022, PTC acquired Germany-based Intland Software for $280 million.
Based in Stuttgart, Intland Software develops and markets the Codebeamer Application Lifecycle Management software products, which includes a cloud-ready and a fully integrated solution. In the fourth quarter of 2022, Codebeamer won contracts from a German automaker, a semiconductor company and a Korean automaker.
In 2021, PTC completed the acquisition of Arena Solutions for $715 million. Arena Solutions’ takeover enabled PTC in providing its customers with a comprehensive SaaS solution that encompasses CAD and PLM offerings. Arena Solutions’ buyout complemented PTC’s earlier acquisition of Onshape.
The company acquired Onshape for $470 million in cash to enhance Creo and Windchill products with advanced SaaS capabilities. We anticipate PTC to pursue tuck-in acquisitions, which will further expand product portfolio in the long term.
However, unfavorable forex movements, inflation and overall challenging global macroeconomic conditions are expected to weigh down on the performance in the near term. Stiff competition, leveraged balance sheet and escalated integration risks from frequent acquisitions are additional headwinds.
At present, PTC carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). Shares of PTC have gained 4.1% against the
sub-industry
’s decline of 24.8% in the past year.
Stocks to Consider
Some better-ranked stocks from the broader technology space are
Arista Networks
ANET
,
Jabil
JBL
and
Asure Software
ASUR
, each presently sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see
the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Arista Networks’ 2022 earnings is pegged at $4.37 per share, up 0.5% in the past 60 days. The long-term earnings growth rate is anticipated to be 17.5%.
Arista Networks’ earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the last four quarters, the average being 12.7%. Shares of ANET have declined 14.1% in the past year.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Jabil’s 2023 earnings is pegged at $8.31 per share, rising 1.6% in the past 60 days. The long-term earnings growth rate is anticipated to be 12%.
Jabil’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in all the last four quarters, the average being 8.9%. Shares of JBL have declined 5.9% in the past year.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Asure Software’s 2022 earnings is pegged at 7 cents per share, rising 75% in the past 60 days. The long-term earnings growth rate is anticipated to be 23%.
Asure Software’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in all the last four quarters, the average being 83.3%. Shares of ASUR have soared 36.9% in the past year.
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