By Dhirendra Tripathi
Investing.com – Citrix stock (NASDAQ:CTXS) fell 2.9% in premarket trading Monday on reports the firm could go private at a price below its Friday close of $105.55.
According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, Elliott Management’s private-equity arm, Evergreen Coast Capital, and tech-focused Vista Equity Partners are likely to pay $104 apiece to take the software company private, valuing it at around $13 billion.
Bloomberg had in September reported that Citrix was working with advisers to explore a potential sale. The talks followed Elliott taking a 10% stake in the company. Elliott is known to chase companies to take steps to increase shareholder returns. This includes moves like reshuffling top management, forcing buybacks, and demands for better capital allocation.
Citrix specializes in remote access software solutions. That skill was in high demand during the pandemic and looks likely to remain so as more corporates integrate work-from-home into their overall business model.
After the initial dispapointment over its slow adoption of Cloud, the market is taking note of its transition to a more predictable subscription model. Annualized recurring revenue in its third quarter grew 13% from a year earlier. Citrix shares are down nearly 21% in last one year but are up about 30% in last five months.