Avery Dennison Pays $249 Million for Radio Tag Operation

Glendale label and industrial supply company Avery Dennison Corp. announced Wednesday an agreement to purchase Smartrac’s transponder division for 225 million Euros, or $249 million. Smartrac, headquartered in Amsterdam, develops high security radio frequency identification products. Avery Dennison will receive its RFID transponder business, which makes trackable tags that electronically store information for retail products. The division will have estimated global revenue of about $140 million for 2019. The deal is expected to generate more than $450 million in revenue for the buyer. Avery Dennison Chief Executive Mitch Butier said the acquisition is part of Avery Dennison’s push to add faster-growing, higher-value categories to its product portfolio. “Smartrac’s Transponder Division represents an excellent strategic fit for us, accelerating our strategy to expand our Intelligent Labels platform across a variety of end markets and customers within the industrial and retail segments,” Butier said in a statement. “We believe in a future where every physical item will have a unique digital identity and digital life, which will transform the visibility of products throughout the supply chain,” added Vice President Francisco Melo. The deal is expected to close in a few months. Avery Dennison will fund it with existing cash and credit. Shares of Avery Dennison (AVY) on Thursday closed down 33 cents, or less than a percent, to $131.52 on the New York Stock Exchange.