Mercury Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRCY) is a provider of complex electronic subsystems to major defense contractors. Its devices allow Mercury’s defense contractor customers to develop their products more quickly and at lower risk than if they did it completely on their own. Such systems collect, process, store, and send information from devices on planes and UAVs (such as radar and image sensors), provide missile defense for ships and ground based platforms, and are integrated into electronic warfare systems (such as jammers). In March, Mercury made a significant acquisition of a defense unit that was part of Microsemi Corp. This unit added “embedded protection” capabilities that are like military hardware cybersecurity, as well as solid state storage capabilities for its systems (versus using hard disk drives). As occurred in the first quarter, the market continued to reward Mercury for this highly strategic, accretive acquisition.
From Baron Discovery Fund's second quarter 2016 commentary.
