Smartsheet to be acquired by Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners, shares jump

Investing.com -- Smartsheet (NYSE: NYSE:SMAR ) announced on Tuesday that it will be acquired by Blackstone (NYSE:BX ) and Vista Equity Partners in an all-cash deal valued at approximately $8.4 billion.

Shares of Smartsheet surged 6% in early Tuesday trading following the announcement.

The acquisition will see Smartsheet shareholders receiving $56.50 per share, representing a 41% premium to the company's 90-day volume-weighted average stock price before reports of a potential sale surfaced in mid-July.

Smartsheet, known for its enterprise platform for work management, has seen substantial growth over the past decade.

CEO Mark Mader highlighted the significance of the acquisition, saying, "Our next phase of growth and customer success is underway, and we look forward to partnering with Blackstone and Vista to accelerate our vision of modernizing work management for enterprises globally."

The acquisition reflects the growing demand for collaborative work solutions as enterprises increasingly adopt Smartsheet's platform for managing diverse business processes.

Blackstone's Martin Brand and Sachin Bavishi noted the platform's critical role in helping teams "collaborate at scale to achieve superior results."

Vista Equity Partners also highlighted Smartsheet's potential to enhance productivity and decision-making across modern enterprises.

"Modern enterprises rely on Smartsheet's simple and scalable solutions to manage a diverse range of business-critical processes every single day because they enable seamless collaboration, enhanced productivity and faster and more informed decision-making," said Monti Saroya, Co-Head of Vista's Flagship Fund and Senior Managing Director, and John Stalder, Managing Director at Vista.

The deal includes a 45-day "go-shop" period, allowing Smartsheet to explore alternative proposals. The transaction is expected to close by January 2025.

Once completed, Smartsheet will be delisted from public markets and become a privately held company.

Source: Investing.com