By Milana Vinn
(Reuters) -Pros Holdings Inc, a U.S. provider of revenue management software to airlines and other industries, is exploring options that include a potential sale, according to people familiar with the matter.
Pros, which has struggled to return to profitability, is being advised by investment bank Qatalyst Partners in its discussions with potential acquirers, the sources said.
Many of the suitors are private equity firms whose offers Pros has rejected, the sources added. The buyout firms have so far been unable to come up with an attractive deal because of the company's losses, and it is possible that negotiations conclude without an agreement, the sources said.
The sources requested anonymity because the matter is confidential. Spokespeople for Pros and Qatalyst did not respond to requests for comment.
Pros shares jumped 13% on the news to $36.18 in early New York trading on Wednesday, giving the company a market value of $1.7 billion.
Pros provides price optimization and revenue management software for companies in various sectors, including aviation.
Founded in 1985, the Houston-based company has posted annual losses since it started offering its software through cloud computing in 2015, spending more on product development, sales and other operations than it earns.
The COVID-19 pandemic, which weighed heavily on Pros' airline clients, compounded its woes, and the company is not projected by most Wall Street analysts to return to profitability for at least the next three years.
A silver lining for Pros has been its revenue growth as the pandemic subsided.
It reported subscription revenue of $57.3 million in the second quarter, up 14% year-over-year, with overall sales up 11% year-over-year to $75.8 million.
It still reported a net loss of $13.29 million in the second quarter, in line with its $13.85 million loss a year earlier.