Fore Systems plans on doubling in size
Wednesday, November 04, 1998
By Michael Newman, Post-Gazette Staff Writer
Betting on continued growth, Fore Systems hopes to double in size over the
next several years, and tomorrow the county commissioners are scheduled to
vote on its expansion project.
Confirming past projections, Chief Financial Officer Bruce Haney said
yesterday the Warrendale networking-equipment company plans to double its
headquarters to about 600,000 square feet. The added space will allow Fore
to add some 1,000 new employees "over the next several years," he said.
Fore opened its current headquarters, three architecturally striking
glass-and-steel structures built into a Warrendale hillside, about a year ago.
At the time, company officials said the company had left room for two more
buildings on the site as the company grew.
The plan is to add three more buildings, Haney said, though the total square
footage of the additions will remain the same. Haney said construction on the
first building could begin within 30 days and be completed in 12 to 18
months.
In part, the new buildings are needed to accommodate the growing number of
employees at Fore's headquarters. The company has been hiring engineers,
marketers, sales staff and other personnel at a rate of about 250 to 300 per
year, Haney said. Fore currently employs about 900 in Warrendale.
If current hiring patterns persist, Fore could add up to 1,000 new employees
over the next several years. Thus the plans to get construction of the new
building underway, Haney said.
The company currently is in the process of obtaining the necessary
permissions and approvals from municipal and county officials for the
expansion.
The county commissioners are slated to vote tomorrow on the sale of some
county land to Fore and on a property-tax abatement that would save the
company about $387,450 over five years. Approval is expected.
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It seems that ATM market is growing rapidly, and FORE products are being very well received. FORE as always is a takeover candidate and it can happen anytime. At this price FORE is still a very good buy. The market valuation is lower than 2B$ for a company that is generating about 800M in revenue. Typical acquisition for this type of company is between 4 to 8 times sales. At 4 times sales, FOER should fetch around 30$. At 8 times sales, it will be around 50$. |
