Data#3 buys up stake boost in Discovery Technology

Laurence Baynham - CEO, Data#3

Cloud solutions and ICT service provider, Data#3 (ASX:DTL), has announced the acquisition of an extra 15.8 per cent stake in Wi-Fi analytics provider Discovery Technology.

The $700,000 investment will be funded from cash flow and will take Data#3’s shareholding of the company from 61.6 percent to 77.4 per cent at the end of July.

The remaining 22.6 per cent shareholding will remain owned by CEO and founder Brendan Williams.

Data#3 acquired 42.5 per cent of Discovery Technology in July 2014. One year later, in July 2015, Data#3 acquired a further 14.2 percent stake in the company for $500,000.

The provider expects net profit before tax for the 2017 financial year of $22.4 million, a 15 per cent increase compared to the previous year.

The pre-audited results also revealed the company expects to post a net profit after tax of $15.2 million, a 10 per cent increase compared to 2016.

The company will announce full year results on 23 August.

Last year, Data#3 reported revenues of $983.2 million, up 13 per cent compared to the previous year.

“The FY16 results reflect the company’s strategy of transitioning from primarily a product centric approach to an increasingly service centric approach in a rapidly changing IT environment,” Data#3 CEO, Laurence Baynham, said at the time.

Data#3 has recently been named the partner that will help Microsoft deliver a $55 million licencing deal to 26 South Australian Government entities.

Some of the enterprise software included in the contract is Core CAL Software Assurance, WINE3 Software Assurance and Office 365.