Charlotte’s corporate heavyweight Honeywell is cashing out of one of its Carolinas operations, striking a $1.4 billion all-cash deal to sell its Productivity Solutions and Services unit to Brady Corporation. The business, which makes mobile computers, barcode scanners and industrial printers, is the latest piece Honeywell is carving off as it reshapes itself ahead of a planned aerospace separation.
Deal details
In a Monday announcement, Honeywell said the Productivity Solutions and Services business, or PSS, will go to Brady in an all-cash transaction that is expected to close in the second half of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary conditions. PSS generated roughly $1.1 billion in revenue in 2025 and sits inside Honeywell’s Industrial Automation portfolio, according to Honeywell. The company framed the sale as another step in simplifying its portfolio.
Brady expands its data-capture footprint
Brady, which is buying the business, said PSS is based in Fort Mill, South Carolina, and operates globally with about 3,000 employees. The unit provides hardware, software and services that support high-volume data capture in logistics and manufacturing settings, the company said. “The acquisition of Honeywell’s PSS business will significantly expand our portfolio into leading-edge mobility and scanning solutions,” Brady President and CEO Russell R. Shaller said in a statement, per Brady Corporation.
Part of a broader reshaping
The PSS sale slots into a broader, multi-year effort by Honeywell to narrow its focus around automation, aerospace and advanced materials. That campaign has already included divesting its personal protective equipment business in 2024 and spinning off Advanced Materials in 2025. The PSS deal is another move aimed at unlocking shareholder value and positioning the remaining automation operations for growth as Honeywell works toward an Aerospace separation targeted for the third quarter of 2026, according to Bloomberg.
Local angle and workforce
Honeywell’s corporate headquarters sits in Charlotte, but the PSS business is centered in nearby Fort Mill, which means immediate operational changes are expected to land mostly at the unit’s existing sites, not at the uptown Charlotte headquarters. “With the PSS divestiture, we are nearing completion of our multi-year portfolio transformation,” Honeywell Chairman and CEO Vimal Kapur said in the company’s announcement, as noted by Honeywell.
Money and valuation
Brady said the $1.4 billion price tag represents roughly 8 times EBITDA for the trailing 12 months ended December 31, 2025. The company expects the acquisition to be double-digit accretive to adjusted diluted earnings per share within the first year after closing. Brady also projected at least $25 million of annual run-rate cost synergies within three years of the deal’s completion, according to Brady Corporation.
What to watch next
Regulatory reviews and other standard closing conditions are the main remaining hurdles, and both companies are sticking to guidance that the deal will wrap up in the back half of 2026. Market watchers will also be tracking whether Honeywell can line up a buyer for its Warehouse and Workflow Solutions business and whether its planned aerospace separation stays on schedule, Bloomberg reported.
