Amazon's deal for iRobot looks strategic if it can make it to the finish line
metamorworks

Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) snapped up iRobot (IRBT) on Friday for $1.7B in the tech giant's fourth largest acquisition ever following deals for Whole Foods, MGM, and One Medical.
Of note, Massachusetts-based iRobot (IRBT) has sold millions of its popular Roomba vacuums and launched an AI-powered platform for its robot vacuums and mops earlier in the year.
Shares of iRobot (IRBT) traded about 2.5% below the deal price of $61 per share in late Friday morning action with some regulatory concerns in the mix. Antitrust expert Ethan Glass observed the U.S. Federal Trade Commission is already investigating Amazon (AMZN) and is likely to review the new acquisition. "I would say there is a three out of four chance of a deep investigation and a one out of four chance of a challenge," he predicted.
On Wall Street, the early reaction to the deal is favorable. "We haven't heard much lately about Amazon's smart home devices strategy and this acquisition puts it back on the agenda," weighed in Atlantic Equities analyst James Cordwell. Baird thinks the M&A play reinforces Amazonâs interest and market position in robotics and home automation, as well as highlighting strategic value of AI. D.A. Davidson said the deal shows that Amazon CEO Andy Jassy is more willing to do M&A than former CEO Jeff Bezos. All three firms have Buy-equivalent ratings on AMZN.
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