Expected to Increase Ceragon's Market Presence Mainly in
North America with Private
Networks and Small Service Providers; Expected to be Accretive
(Non-GAAP) By the End of 2024
ROSH
HA'AIN, Israel,
Dec. 5,
2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Ceragon Networks Ltd. (NASDAQ:
CRNT), the global innovator and leading solutions provider of 5G
wireless transport, today announced that it has completed the
previously announced acquisition of Siklu, a provider of
multi-Gigabit "wireless fiber" connectivity in urban, suburban and
rural areas. The acquisition creates a more comprehensive,
end-to-end offering ideally targeted to small service providers and
private networks around the world. In particular, the combination
gives Ceragon immediate access to Siklu's established leadership in
the millimeter-wave market in North America including its
Fixed Wireless Access offering.
Doron Arazi, Ceragon CEO, said
"This acquisition is expected to accelerate our growth strategy by
expanding our presence with the fastest-growing segments of the
market and enhancing our end-to-end solutions to better address the
evolving needs of private networks. In addition, I expect that this
acquisition will have a positive impact on our gross margins in the
near-term and our profitability in the intermediate to long term.
We welcome the talented and experienced Siklu team to Ceragon, and
integration initiatives are underway and progressing according to
plan."
Ronen Ben-Hamou, Siklu's CEO, has
joined Ceragon's management team, utilizing his experience to help
with a smooth integration.
The terms of the transaction are substantially in-line with the
considerations previously disclosed.
Ceragon expects the acquisition will increase its 2024 revenue
by approximately $25-$29 million. The acquisition is expected to be
accretive to the consolidated gross margins of Ceragon as Siklu's
margins are at levels significantly higher than Ceragon's
historical margins. Ceragon management expects the combination to
improve Siklu's results by leveraging Ceragon's working capital
management capabilities, as well as expanded profitability
following synergies. Inclusive of these business improvements,
management anticipates the transaction to be accretive to non-GAAP
earnings by the second half of 2024. Ceragon expects to include the
Siklu acquisition in its 2024 guidance, to be provided, in
combination with the release of Ceragon's fourth quarter results,
in early 2024.
As part of this transaction, Ceragon expanded its total loan
credit facility by $5 million to
$77 million in total, and Siklu's
primary lender joined Ceragon's lending consortium.
About Ceragon Networks
Ceragon Networks Ltd. (NASDAQ: CRNT) is the global innovator and
leading solutions provider of 5G wireless transport. We help
operators and other service providers worldwide increase
operational efficiency and enhance end customers' quality of
experience with innovative wireless backhaul and fronthaul
solutions. Our customers include service providers, public safety
organizations, government agencies and utility companies, which use
our solutions to deliver 5G & 4G broadband wireless
connectivity, mission-critical multimedia services, stabilized
communications, and other applications at high reliability and
speed.
Ceragon's unique multicore technology and disaggregated approach
to wireless transport provides highly reliable, fast to deploy,
high-capacity wireless transport for 5G and 4G networks with
minimal use of spectrum, power, real estate, and labor resources.
It enables increased productivity, as well as simple and quick
network modernization, positioning Ceragon as a leading solutions
provider for the 5G era. We deliver a complete portfolio of turnkey
end-to-end AI-based managed and professional services that ensure
efficient network rollout and optimization to achieve the highest
value for our customers. Our solutions are deployed by more than
600 service providers, as well as more than 1,600 private network
owners, in more than 130 countries. For more information please
visit: www.ceragon.com
Ceragon Networks® and FibeAir® are registered trademarks of
Ceragon Networks Ltd. in the United
States and other countries. CERAGON ® is a trademark of
Ceragon Networks Ltd., registered in various countries. Other names
mentioned are owned by their respective holders.
Safe Harbor
This press release contains statements that constitute
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Securities
Act of 1933, as amended and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, and the safe-harbor provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are
based on the current beliefs, expectations and assumptions of
Ceragon's management about Ceragon's business, financial condition,
results of operations, micro and macro market trends and other
issues addressed or reflected therein. Examples of forward-looking
statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding
the benefits of the transaction as well as statements regarding the
companies' products, prospects and results following the
transaction. You may identify these and other forward-looking
statements by the use of words such as "may", "plans",
"anticipates", "believes", "estimates", "targets", "expects",
"intends", "potential" and similar expressions, or the negative of
such terms, or other comparable terminology (although not all
forward-looking statements contain these identifying words that are
intended to identify forward-looking statements).
Although we believe that the expectations reflected in such
forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions,
we can give no assurance that our expectations will be obtained or
that any deviations therefrom will not be material. Such
forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and
uncertainties that may cause the actual results, performance or
achievements of both Ceragon and Siklu to be materially
different from any future results or performance to differ
materially from those anticipated, expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include,
but are not limited to: the risk that the anticipated benefits of
the transaction may not be realized on the contemplated timeframe
or at all, which may adversely affect the companies' businesses and
the price of Ceragon's traded securities;; delays, disruptions or
increased costs in the integration of Siklu's business with
Ceragon; unanticipated restructuring costs may be incurred or
undisclosed liabilities assumed; attempts to retain key personnel,
customers, and vendors may not succeed; risks related to diverting
management's attention from Ceragon's ongoing business operations;
exposure to inflation, currency rate and interest rate fluctuations
and risks associated with doing business locally and
internationally, as well as fluctuations in the market price of
Ceragon's traded securities; the effect of the evolving nature of
the continuing war in Gaza between
Israel and the Hamas; the impact
of general economic conditions on the on Ceragon's and Siklu's
business; ongoing or potential litigations or disputes, incidental
to the conduct of Siklu's ongoing business, with customers,
suppliers, landlords, or other third parties; potential adverse
reactions or changes to business relationships resulting from the
announcement or completion of the transaction; potential negative
changes in general economic conditions in the regions or the
industries in which Ceragon and Siklu operate; and such other
risks, uncertainties and other factors that could affect our
results of operation, as further detailed in Ceragon's most recent
Annual Report on Form 20-F, as published on May 1, 2023, and in Ceragon's other filings with
the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") as well as
other documents that may be subsequently filed by Ceragon from time
to time with the SEC.
We caution you not to place undue reliance on forward-looking
statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. Ceragon does
not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements
in order to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after
the date of this release unless required by law.
Ceragon's public filings are available on the SEC's website at
www.sec.gov and may also be obtained from Ceragon's website at
www.ceragon.com.
Investor & Media Contact:
Rob Fink or Bob
Meyers
FNK IR
Tel. 1+646-809-4048
crnt@fnkir.com
View original
content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ceragon-networks-completes-acquisition-of-siklu-302005723.html
SOURCE Ceragon Networks Ltd.