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There are reports that Microsoft is in talks to acquire cybersecurity business Mandiant, which became an independent entity following the sale of FireEye.
Cybersecurity firm Mandiant has reported strong revenue growth for its 2021 fiscal year, amid rumours that Microsoft plans to acquire the company.
The two companies have entered acquisition talks, according to unnamed sources speaking to Bloomberg, but it is uncertain if this will result in an offer. Mandiant and Microsoft have not commented on the potential deal.
Following reports of acquisition talks yesterday (8 February), Mandiant shares rose by 18pc in New York.
Microsoft has made several recent purchases to bolster its cybersecurity efforts. Last July, it made a deal to acquire cybersecurity firm RiskIQ. A month before it acquired ReFirm Labs, a start-up developing security tools for IoT devices and servers, and in 2020 the tech giant purchased CyberX.
Mandiant offers managed detection and incidence response services. It was acquired by FireEye in 2014, but became an independent entity again last year after the FireEye product business was sold to McAfee Enterprise.
The infosec player reported a loss per share of $0.10 in the last quarter, while revenue rose 21pc to $132.9m. This beat Wall Street expectations, ZDNet reports.
Mandiant reported deferred revenue of $410m for the fourth quarter of 2021, a 44pc increase. The company’s revenue reached $483m for the full year of 2021, a 21pc overall increase.
“We achieved a significant milestone in Q4, divesting the FireEye products business and positioning Mandiant to deliver accelerating growth and extend our leadership position in expertise and intelligence,” Mandiant CEO Kevin Mandia said.
“We are uniquely positioned to address an enormous market need and can concentrate all of our attention on helping organisations close their cybersecurity gap.”
Mandiant said it repurchased $200m of its common stock during the last quarter under a board-approved stock repurchase programme announced last June. The company had repurchased $300m in total by the end of 2021, with the potential still to repurchase an additional $200m.
For the year ahead, the cybersecurity company is anticipating revenue between $555m to $565m, along with a loss per share between $0.38 and $0.36.
“We had record billings and revenue for threat intelligence and consulting in the fourth quarter, and our overall performance highlights the early financial and operational success in the relaunch of our company,” Mandia added.
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