Waterloo-based Descartes Systems Group has acquired GroundCloud, an American company that provides solutions for final-mile logistics, for approximately $184 million CAD ($138 million USD).
GroundCloud represents the latest addition to Descartes’ portfolio as the latter continues its active acquisition strategy.
Founded in 1981, Descartes offers a suite of software products for logistics and supply chains. Its offerings allow users to monitor and manage numerous processes in logistics such as delivery resources, invoices, documentation, and shipments.
With GroundCloud, Descartes aims to continue investing in its final-mile capabilities.
Descartes focuses on serving transportation providers, logistics service providers, and distribution-intensive companies. Some of its clients include 3M, Air Canada, Canon, CVS Pharmacy, Emirates, The Home Depot, and the United Parcel Service.
The Waterloo company began trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange in 1998, and despite recent market volatility, its stock price has been consistent in its growth trajectory.
Descartes was trading at $91.54 CAD last year. As of today, Descartes’ share price is trading at $100.79, representing a 10 percent increase since 2022. This change in Descartes’ market value is a stark outlier among the rest of the tech sector, which has seen private and public companies alike grapple with the tight fundraising market and the overall volatility of the tech industry.
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In the past, Descartes has also acquired Supply Vision ($16 million CAD), Pinpoint ($15 million CAD), and XPS Technologies ($65 million USD).
With GroundCloud, Descartes aims to continue investing in its final-mile capabilities with worker and community safety at the forefront.
Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, GroundCloud combines operations, safety, and compliance into one platform. Final-mile carriers use GroundCloud’s products to receive customer delivery orders, plan and execute routes against those orders, train and monitor drivers on safety and performance, manage assets and resources, as well as analyze the operating efficiency of their business.
As part of its mandate to improve safety in final-mile logistics, GroundCloud’s platform also incorporates video telematics to provide driving event detection and verification, combined with reactive coaching solutions.