NCR Looks To Buy ATM Operator Cardtronics For $1.7 Billion

Retail and hospitality technology firm NCR Corporation is looking to acquire ATM operator Cardtronics for $39 per share, or about $1.7 billion.

“The acquisition of Cardtronics will accelerate and expand the NCR-as-a-service strategy that we outlined at our Investor Day last month,” NCR President and Chief Executive Officer Michael Hayford said in a Monday (Jan. 11) press release. 

He added that Cardtronics’ debit network complements NCR’s payments platform and the combined new entity will offer a comprehensive connection of retail and bank customers “while capitalizing on the banking industry’s transition toward infrastructure outsourcing.”

NCR’s $39 per share all-cash offer topped Apollo Global Management’s earlier bid for $35 per share to acquire Cardtronics, Bloomberg reported. Shares of Cardtronics climbed 0.3 percent to reach $41.19 as of Monday morning. 

With a global network of 285,000 ATMs across 10 countries in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Africa, Cardtronics has teamed up with numerous lenders that shuttered physical branches but still wanted to offer customers instant access to cash.

Cardtronics’ biggest backer — Hudson Executive — owns a 19.44 percent stake, according to Refinitiv data, per Reuters. Other investors include Blackrock Institutional Trust and Vanguard Group.

Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, NCR offers products and services that help businesses interact with their customers. Cardtronics, based in Houston, Texas, specializes in managing ATMS and self-service financial kiosks.

In mid-December, Cardtronics announced a $35 per share offer by Apollo Global Management and Hudson Executive Capital. According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Cardtronics CEO Ed West said selling the company will help it move beyond helping ATM users withdraw cash.