NEW YORK (AP) -- Business software maker Epicor Software Corp. on Monday said it had agreed to a roughly $780 million buyout offer from private-equity firm Apax Partners.
Apax offered $12.50 per share for Epicor, an 11.2 percent premium over its closing price on Friday. Epicor shares rose $1.24 to $12.49 in midday trading,
Epicor will be combined with Activant Solutions Inc., a privately held company that Apax is also buying. Activant makes business management software for retail and wholesale distribution businesses and is based in Livermore, Calif.
The combined company will be called Epicor and will have over 30,000 customers and $825 million in annual revenues, the companies said.
Apax put the combined value of the deals at $2 billion. With about 63 million shares outstanding, the Epicor acquisition would cost about $780 million on its own.
Epicor which is based in Irvine, Calif., said holders of about 19 percent of its shares have entered into support agreements with Apax. In addition, Elliott Associates, which controls about 13.5 percent of the shares, has indicated that it supports the transaction.
Activant is controlled by investment funds affiliated with Hellman & Friedman, Thoma Bravo and JMI Equity, Apax said.