Comarco Buys Wireless System Firm

Comarco Inc., an Irvine maker of test equipment for wireless telephone carriers, said Tuesday that it has acquired an Oregon company for about $6.4 million in stock and cash.

Comarco said in a press release that it will pay $2.1 million cash and issue 257,428 shares to buy EDX Engineering Inc. in Eugene, a maker of system planning tools for wireless communications.

The stock was valued at nearly $4.3 million, based on Monday’s close of $16.55 a share. On Tuesday, Comarco stock gained 89 cents to close at $17.44 a share in Nasdaq trading.

The company said the acquisition will result in a one-time charge in the fourth quarter, ending Jan. 31, for the purchase of research and development already in process.

Comarco plans to retain the EDX name and to operate EDX as a division of Comarco Wireless Technologies Inc., the company’s wireless subsidiary.

In the past year, Comarco has divested itself of its non-wireless business units to focus on the high-speed wireless market.

It expects the acquisition of EDX to give it access to a new market segment for Comarco’s engineering services. Comarco said EDX’s radio engineering expertise and a wireless planning software platform complement the company’s existing portfolio of wireless products and engineering services.