ATK Moves Into Tactical Accessories Market With Purchase of Eagle Industries

Defense Daily, April 1, 2009

By Calvin Biesecker

Alliant Techsystems [ATK] yesterday said it has acquired Eagle Industries in a deal that immediately gives it a footprint in the military market for tactical accessories and positions it to expand offerings to the law enforcement community.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. ATK said the acquisition will add about $80 million in revenues in FY '10, which begins today, and be slightly accretive to earnings per share.

Eagle Industries, based in Missouri, produces more than 5,000 products such as tactical assault vests, load-bearing equipment, weapons transporting gear, holsters and more. ATK currently has a relatively scant set of offerings in the tactical accessories market, supplying such things as rifle scopes, binoculars and tripods to commercial sportsmen.

Eagle Industries' primary customer is the United States military although it also sells to homeland security and law enforcement agencies. There are a number of small suppliers of tactical accessories but the largest competitor in the United States is Britain's BAE Systems through its acquisition of the former Armor Holdings two years ago.

With U.S. military forces scheduled to begin drawing down in Iraq and additional forces on their way to Afghanistan, ATK believes that the tactical accessories market is ripe for reset and sustainment opportunities.

The market for tactical accessories is about $1.5 billion annually, ATK spokesman Bryce Hallowell told Defense Daily. As the Defense Department seeks equipment that lightens the load for its soldiers, ATK believes Eagle Industries' product line fits with this initiative, he said.

ATK also sees significant opportunities to sell accessories to its well established base of customers in the law enforcement community, to whom the company is the largest provider of ammunition in the United States.

Moreover, ATK has expanded its ammunition sales internationally, including a recent contract with Afghanistan security forces for non-standard ammunition that can be fired from rifles such as the Soviet-made AK-47. The company is competing for additional ammo business internationally, in particular for non-standard rounds, and plans to begin offering its new line of tactical accessories to its new customers.

"Eagle Industries is a quality leader in the tactical nylon accessories and will provide ATK with an exciting opportunity to expand its presence into the growing military and law enforcement accessories markets," Dan Murphy, chairman and CEO of ATK, said in a statement. "We have successfully grown our accessory business in commercial sport hunting markets and will use that expertise, combined with the capabilities of Eagle Industries, to grow our market position in domestic and international tactical accessory markets."

ATK's new business will be called ATK Tactical Systems and operate as a standalone division within the company's Armament Systems group. The group, formerly the Ammunition Group, has been diversifying beyond ammunition into precision guided rockets, small weapons such as the Mk 19 grenade launcher and now tactical accessories. ATK Tactical Systems will be led by Scott Carver, who comes aboard from Eagle Industries.

Eagle Industries' financial adviser on the deal was Frontenac Financial Group.

The acquisition by ATK was the first for the company since acquiring Swales Aerospace in June 2007.

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