Splunk and Cisco Unite To Accelerate Digital Resilience as One of the Leading Global Software Companies
www.splunk.com
Splunk is taking the next step in our journey to realize our vision for the future of security and observability by joining forces with Cisco.

Cisco on Thursday announced an agreement to buy cybersecurity and observability company Splunk for about $28 billion.

The big picture: Legacy tech giants are usually the last to recognize they’re being disrupted, but that doesn’t seem to be the case with AI.

Expect a lot more of these sorts of mergers, even if the targets aren’t AI-native. Details: The $157 per share offer represents over a 31% premium to Wednesday’s closing price for Splunk shares.

The last time Splunk traded above $157 per share was in early 2021. It’s the networking giant’s largest acquisition. Cisco says the merger will add roughly $4 billion in ARR, boosting its subscription and recurring revenue efforts. The purchase price will be financed via a combination of cash and debt, with a final closing by the end of Q3 2024, the company said. What they’re saying: “This will help our customers move from threat detection and response to threat prediction and prevention,” said Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins during a conference call Thursday morning.

“In terms of observability, our complimentary capabilities will offer observability for the full IT stack, from the application to the network, across hybrid and multi-cloud environments.” Editor’s note: This story was updated with additional details about the deal.