ANALYST VIEWS: IS THE ACQUISITION OF SCHOOLNET A GOOD MOVE?
PAUL RICHARDS | NUMIS
This acquisition is entirely consistent with Pearson’s strategy. Since selling IDC it said it would re-invest the proceeds into growing areas of education. This buy fits with this. Pearson has proven itself to be the world’s best education company and this only reinforces that.
ALEX DEGROOTE | PANMURE
Schoolnet is a $230m big bolt-on, representing a further acquisition in the US education technology sector. It is said to be accretive to full-year 2012 earnings. The deal is consistent with other acquisitions in the sector. Our target price is increased to 1,150p.
JONATHAN JACKSON | KILLIK & CO
Schoolnet serves more than 5m students, offering data-driven solutions to assess performance and to efficiently manage student curriculums. The deal is expected to be earnings accretive from 2012, subject to receiving US antitrust approval.