Caxton-Iseman Fills Out IT Platform –

Picking up its fourth add-on acquisition for information technology platform company Anteon Corp., Caxton-Iseman Capital this month acquired Sherikon Inc. The purchase of Sherikon is the latest step toward Caxton-Iseman’s goal of building an information technology company with a value of $1 billion.

The details of the transaction were not disclosed, but according to a statement the acquisition will tag more than $65 million onto Anteon’s annual revenue bringing it above $600 million. The deal was financed through the company’s existing acquisition facility. Caxton-Iseman did not contribute equity to this purchase, although it has in previous Anteon add-ons.

Fred Iseman, president of Caxton-Iseman and chairman of Anteon, said Sherikon and Anteon are a logical match considering Anteon’s familiarity with Sherikon management – which he describes as “sublime” – and Sherikon’s familiarity with Caxton-Iseman. “When they decided to sell they came directly to Anteon . . . just based upon relationships and mutual esteem.”

Sherikon, based in Chantilly, Va., provides consulting services in IT, engineering, health care, training and manufacturing to federal, state and local clients. The company will be integrated into Anteon, which provides IT and e-business services for government and commercial customers. Sherikon’s 14 offices will be consolidated with Anteon’s 14 offices, however the company will not lose any people, Iseman said.

“This is a very good time in which to acquire IT services companies [in the $100 million revenue range] with strategic value and we’ve been focusing on that,” said Iseman. “Our last acquisition was substantially larger – it was about $170 million revenue – but now we’re focusing on strategic add-ons, niche add-ons.”

Anteon, based in Fairfax, Va., has been growing through acquisitions since Caxton-Iseman bought it for $45 million in 1996. Since then it has acquired Vector Data Systems in 1997, Techmatics Inc. in 1998 and Analysis & Technology in the following year, all of which provide IT-related services to the government.

And they just keep coming. Anteon and Caxton-Iseman are already looking at their next add-on, a company in the e-government sector with revenues of approximately $50 million.