Nice Systems Could be Takeover Candidate: S&P (NICE)

There has been a lot of merger and acquisition activity in the biometric security area recently. S&P Equity Research expects it to continue. They expect the U.S. military to put more money into biometrics as they cut back in other areas. S&P Equity Research thinks that Nice Systems

could be the next takeover. In August, 3M agreed to buy IT concern Cogent (COGT in a deal expected to close, before the end of this year. The biometric market, which is about $4 billion worldwide, is projected by Cogent to grow about 20% a year as governments and law enforcement agencies take a greater interest in identification systems. S&P Equity Analyst Mathew Christy, CFA, sees the Cogent purchase adding to 3M's border security, law enforcement, and other security services. In August, 3M also agreed to purchase privately held Attenti Holdings S.A., a provider of remote people-tracking technologies. Other recent M&A activity in the biometric security area include OBAE System's, purchase of the the Intelligence Services unit of L-1 Identity Solutions and French aerospace and defense contractor Safran's agreement to acquire the remainder of L-1. L-1.has biometric and enterprise-access solutions, secure credentialing solutions, and enrollment- services businesses. S&P Equity Research thinks that Israeli company Nice Systems could be the next takeover candidate. Here's what they said: “Israeli mid-cap information technology company, Nice Systems, has similar technology to Cogent and L-1, and S&P Equity Analyst Ari Bensinger thinks Nice would make a good acquisition target. “An exciting element of Nice Systems' business is their video-analytics security solution,” notes Bensinger, who thinks of it as video surveillance on steroids.” “This business has shown strong growth with solutions installed in airports, public transportation terminals, and government facilities throughout the world. With over $9 of cash per share, Nice could be an attractive acquisition candidate for a company that wants to gain a strong foothold in the security-monitoring arena,” Bensin said.