Barracuda CEO tells partners: 'You should expect us to acquire'

Vendor announces plan to become a billion-dollar company after recent transition from public to private ownership

Barracuda Networks has laid out to partners its five-year growth plan to reach $1bn in revenue, with acquisitions slated to play a large part in reaching that goal.

Speaking at the Barracuda conference in Monte Carlo, CEO BJ Jenkins reported a "strong" fiscal 2018, with $439m (£325m) billings.

The cybersecurity company transitioned from a public to a private company towards the end of 2017, with private equity firm Thoma Bravo taking ownership. This change allows Barracuda to be more flexible with its acquisitions and decisions, according to Jenkins, who cited its acquisition of US-based companies Sonian and Phishline as examples of this newfound flexibility.

"If I were public, I would have lost one of those acquisitions. I wouldn't have been able to move as quickly as I did with a private partner," he said.

"We will, and you should expect, Barracuda to acquire. It is a big part of where we are going to go as a company and it is a big part of what Thoma Bravo believes when they bought," he declared, adding that the company aims to add $25m to the company annually via acquisitions each year.

Jenkins (pictured) told partners that the company aims to have $500m revenues by the 2019 fiscal year, regardless of acquisitions.

He attempted to assuage any fears Barracuda partners may have by stating that the move from public to private ownership can only be a good thing. "Just because we are private and not doing quarterly conference calls, we're still going to inform our partners and customers with the progress that we're making," he said.

"When we were public, I had some investors who wanted us to grow, some who wanted us to be more profitable, and there was always arm wrestling over what we needed to do."