Thoma Bravo-backed Sophos acquires Secureworks for $859 mln to strengthen its security portfolio

Secureworks

21/10/2024 14:56

Oct 21 (Reuters) - Cybersecurity firm Sophos, which is
backed by private equity firm Thoma Bravo, said on Monday it
will acquire Secureworks  SCWX.O  for $859 million in an
all-cash deal to strengthen its cybersecurity offering for
small, mid and enterprise customers.
    Reuters previously reported Secureworks shareholder Dell
Technologies  DELL.N  had investment bankers from Morgan Stanley
and Piper Sandler assess takeover interest from potential
buyers, including private equity firms, after earlier
unsuccessful sale attempts.
    Secureworks shareholders, including Dell, will receive $8.50
per share in cash from UK-based Sophos. The stock closed at
$8.47 on Friday.
    Thoma Bravo is building a portfolio of cybersecurity assets,
notably acquiring UK's Darktrace for around $5.3 billion earlier
this year.
    Founded in 1998, the Atlanta, Georgia-based Secureworks
offers security services to protect corporations from
cyberattacks. Its flagship cloud-based platform Taegis helps
detect advanced threats, according to its website.
    Dell acquired Secureworks for $612 million in 2011 before
listing its shares through an initial public offering in New
York in 2016. It earlier explored a sale of Secureworks in 2019.
    Secureworks has struggled to compete and differentiate its
offerings against larger cybersecurity providers. It reported
breakeven results with a quarterly loss of 17 cents per share in
the quarter ended July 31.
    The transaction is expected to close in early 2025.

 (Reporting by Rishi Kant in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay
Kishore)
 ((Rishi.Kant@thomsonreuters.com;))