Motorola Solutions Inc chief executive officer Greg Brown. — Bloomberg
CHICAGO: Motorola Solutions Inc chief executive officer (CEO) Greg Brown said the incoming administration of US President-elect Donald Trump will be favourable to a business that’s already doing very well.
Once synonymous with mobile phones and pagers, Chicago-based Motorola has reinvented itself as a provider of high-tech security products for businesses and governments.
The company provides two-way radios for firefighters, body cameras for police officers and software that sends email and text alerts during emergencies.
Trump has been strident in his support of the police, as he believes city crime should be reduced, and has pledged to build the wall along the border with Mexico, which will require more border agents, Brown said in an interview on Bloomberg TV.
Trump has also vowed to cut the corporate tax rate, and the environment for mergers and acquisitions (M&As) should also be more favourable under his administration, according to Brown.
“There’s a lot to like about this through the lens of a multinational corporation,” the CEO said.
Motorola got out of China years before Trump threatened to increase tariffs on imports from the country by as much as 60%.
Regarding Trump’s pick of Howard Lutnick to lead the Commerce Department, Brown said he thinks Lutnick will be “progressive and aggressive.”
Motorola has done some 40 deals in the last decade, including two acquisitions of US$1bil or more.
The company has strong free cash flow and a low net debt-to-earnings ratio, putting it in good shape to make deals if the opportunities arise.
“M&A does play a key role going forward,” Brown said, describing any acquisitions as more likely to be “tuck-ins” than large deals.
“It depends on what opportunities come forward and at what price,” the CEO added. — Bloomberg
