Compuware said it was selling the company to private equity firm Thoma Bravo in a deal valued at $2.5 billion. The enterprise software company, which primarily offers mainframe operating software, has been retooling, divesting units and fending off activist investors. Compuware also spun off its Covisint unit recently. Those moves refocused Compuware on its mainframe and application performance monitoring software. As a private company Compuware and Thoma Bravo said they will be able to take a long-term strategic view and focus on returns.
Software developer Compuware Corp. agreed to be taken private by Thoma Bravo LLC for about $2.5 billion. Thoma Bravo agreed to pay $10.92 a share in cash, which includes the valuation of the Detroit software maker’s remaining stake in cloud-software company Covisint, which went public about a year ago. Compuware Chairman Gurminder S. Bedi said the deal “reflects a thorough board review of strategic alternatives” and includes the ability to complete the Covisint spinoff to shareholders. Excluding impacts related to Covisint, Thoma Bravo will pay a net $10.25 a share. Compuware launched a sale process last year after Elliott Management Corp. tried to buy the company. The activist hedge fund, which owns about 9.5% of Compuware’s stock, has agreed to vote its shares in favor of the transaction. In 2012, Elliott made an unsolicited bid worth $11 a share that valued Compuware at about $2.4 billion. Compuware was founded in 1973 and has clients at more than 7,100 companies, according to its website.
