Lumentum to acquire NeoPhotonics for $900M
Summary
The increasing global demand for our ultra-pure light tunable lasers and photonics technologies for speed over distance applications is more apparent than ever, and Lumentum is the ideal partner to serve our customers on a larger scale.” Jenks said that the two firms offered a complementary product portfolio, and that the combined entity would benefit from increased scale, breadth of customer application knowledge, and research and development capabilities. News of the proposed merger comes a few months after Lumentum’s $7 billion bid to acquire fellow laser company Coherent was eventually usurped by II-VI, with that deal expected to complete by the end of this year. With its latest move, Lumentum appears to be doubling down on the opportunity in optical communications, rather than pursuing the broader diversification strategy implied by the Coherent acquisition bid. Among its key product lines are reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexers (ROADMs) and components and modules based on indium phosphide (InP) integrated circuits. Attributed largely to demand for high-power fiber lasers, that rise neatly offset a 5 per cent year-on-year drop at Lumentum’s much larger optical communications division, which posted sales of $406 million.