Rocky Hill surveillance camera maker Axsys Technologies Inc., which is exploring a sale of company, “could attract interest from one of the major U.S. defense contractors,” Morgan Keegan analyst Brian W. Ruttenbur said today.
The major defense contractors, he noted, all have significant cash positions, and what he believes is a desire to gain greater exposure to niches of the defense market that “should continue to see solid growth over the next several years.”
The analyst, who rates Axsys “outperform,” said whether or not there is a deal he is optimistic about the company’s prospects. Its shares, he added, are attractively valued.
Axsys has hired investment bank Jefferies & Co. to explore a possible sale.
Axsys said it is getting inquiries from potential buyers in the wake of the company’s slumping share price.
Axsys boasted that while its balance sheet, growth prospects and market presence make it an attractive target, they also affirm its prospects as a stand-alone company.
Axsys employs about 1,000 people nationwide, including about 400 at its manufacturing plant in Nashua, N.H.
At 11 a.m., Axsys traded on Nasdaq at $38.86, up $2.59, or 7.1 percent. Its shares are off their 52-week high of $79.69. (AP)
