Boeing to buy aerospace parts maker KLX for about $3.25 billion

The purchase underscores Boeing's CEO Dennis Muilenburg's bid to extend Boeing's reach into profitable business of providing maintenance, spare parts other services

Boeing agreed to acquire KLX for about $3.25 billion as the world’s largest planemaker bolsters a fast-growing new division that offers maintenance, spare parts and other services to airlines.

The aircraft maker will pay $63 a share, contingent on the separation of KLX’s Energy Services Group, Boeing said Tuesday. The planemaker also will assume about $1 billion in net debt. KLX said it plans to spin off the energy operation to shareholders. The deal is the largest struck so far by CEO Dennis Muilenburg, who has been scouting acquisitions that would more than triple sales at Boeing’s services business.

Boeing has held preliminary talks with partsmaker Woodward, according to media reports in February, and is deep into talks to form a joint venture that would give it control of Embraer SA’s commercial jets. 

The purchase underscores Boeing’s Chief Executive Officer Dennis Muilenburg’s bid to extend Boeing’s reach into the highly profitable business providing maintenance, spare parts and other services over the multi-decade lives of jetliners and military aircraft. 

The Boeing CEO has set a goal of more than tripling sales at the company’s newly formed services division to $50 billion within a decade.