Zendesk rejects US$16 billion private equity offer – Finance – Software

Zendesk explained on Thursday it had rejected an acquisition offer you from a consortium of personal equity corporations for as a lot as US$16 billion ($A22 billion).

The supply from the non-public equity firms, which Zendesk did not detect, was in the variety of US$127 to US$132 for each share in hard cash, the San Francisco-based mostly organization stated. Zendesk shares jumped 10.7% on Thursday to near at US$114.18.

Zendesk stated its board concluded that the non-binding proposal, which does not require it to abandon the SurveyMonkey offer, drastically undervalued it.

The investors, such as hedge fund Jana Partners, want the company to abandon its proposed US$3.9 billion all-stock acquisition of SurveyMonkey parent Momentive World wide, which it agreed in Oct.

Jana has referred to as Zendesk’s system to buy Momentive a “reactive and impulsive choice”.

Zendesk shareholders are scheduled to vote on the Momentive offer on February 25. The Wall Avenue Journal reported on Thursday that Jana was planning to nominate four administrators to the firm’s board and that Thoma Bravo experienced built a takeover approach to Zendesk.

Thoma Bravo is a person of the personal equity corporations that has expressed curiosity in Zendesk but is not section of the non-public fairness consortium that designed the offer you the corporation turned down, a person common wirh the make any difference said. Thoma Bravo and Jana declined to comment.