Enterprise software company Citrix has announced plans to be taken private by Elliott Management and Vista Equity Partners for $16.5 billion including debt, giving the new investors a point of entry into the pandemic-driven cloud computing explosion. The acquisition will pay off investors at $104 per share, the company announced, suggesting an equity value of about $13 billion. The deal will also see Citrix merged into TIBCO, an American business intelligence software firm owned by Vista, which will own approximately 65% of the combined company upon closing.
Founded in 1989, Citrix has been developing remote-access software for over three decades and now provides competitive products that enable employees to securely access company networks and collaborate with coworkers from anywhere. The company has experienced steady revenue growth in recent years, and both Elliott and Vista are confident that when combined with TIBCO, that upward trajectory will increase. While the COVID-19 pandemic forced companies everywhere to fast-track remote work and cloud computing, Citrix fell behind the competition. Elliott previously urged changes within Citrix after becoming an activist investor in 2015, so it’s safe to expect more strategic transformations in the wake of the acquisition and merger.
