Cisco announced Thursday it will purchase Splunk, a cybersecurity and analytics firm, for $157 per share in cash or roughly $28 billion in equity value.

"Our combined capabilities will drive the next generation of AI-enabled security and observability," Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins said in a statement. "From threat detection and response to threat prediction and prevention, we will help make organizations of all sizes more secure and resilient."

The purchase was unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies and is expected to close by the end of the third quarter of 2024.