%Google ($GOOGL) has announced that it is buying %Cybersecurity firm %Mandiant ($MNDT) for $5.4 billion U.S. as part of efforts to better protect its cloud computing business and customers.
The search engine giant said it will pay $23 U.S. a share for Mandiant, which has been in operation since 2004. Mandiant will be integrated into Google’s cloud computing division, which is yet to reach the same size as rivals %Microsoft ($MSFT) Azure or %Amazon ($AMZN) Web Services.
“We look forward to welcoming Mandiant to Google Cloud to further enhance our security operations suite and advisory services, and help customers address their most important security challenges,” said Thomas Kurian, chief executive of Google Cloud, in a news release.
Shares of Mandiant rose 16% on news of the acquisition.
Mandiant, which has a market capitalization of $5.25 billion U.S., was previously under the FireEye umbrella before that brand was sold. FireEye helped Microsoft discover the SolarWinds cybersecurity attack on U.S. government systems last year.
Cybersecurity stocks have been resilient in the current market as most technology stocks see a heavy selloff amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Concerns about cyberwarfare and the need to protect networks from hackers has intensified amid the geopolitical crisis.
Google’s purchase of Mandiant is expected to close later this year.