Third Avenue Comments on NetScout Systems Inc.

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May 27, 2016

NetScout Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:NTCT) Near-term concerns over a slowdown in carrier spending provided us an opportunity to acquire shares of NetScout common at a substantial discount to our estimate of NAV.

NetScout is a well-financed provider of 24x7 network monitoring solutions to carriers and enterprises. Its offerings provide high-quality performance analytics that help its customers resolve technology issues that could negatively impact service quality and/or result in outages/downtime and compromised security. Last year, the company acquired certain communications assets from Danaher which doubled its addressable market by broadening its product offerings, providing an entrée into the cyber security space and increased its distribution. Cost synergies estimated at around $45-55 million are expected from the elimination of redundancies and economies of scale, with additional synergies generated over time as the company moves toward common infrastructure platforms, distribution and support programs.

In the long term, demands for increasing amounts of data seem to continue unabated (not only Big Data but more and more use of streaming video!), requiring more monitoring and troubleshooting of network traffic which should benefit NetScout. For carriers, the cost of monitoring to keep existing customers happy with their service is a small price to pay compared to the cost to acquire new customers.

From Chip Rewey's second quarter 2016 Third Avenue Small-Cap Value Fund letter.