Sage in $445M Best deal
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January 12, 2000: 6:05 a.m. ET
U.K. software provider to snap up U.S. firm; offers 17% premium
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LONDON (CNNfn) - High-flying U.K. software firm Sage Group extended its U.S. reach Wednesday with a deal to buy Best Software for $445 million.
Sage, the world No. 1 maker of accounting software for personal computers, is offering $35 in cash for each Best Software share, a 17 percent premium to Best's price of 29-9/16 at Tuesday's close.
Virginia-based Best (BEST) writes software used by companies to control payroll functions and manage their fixed assets. The U.S. company's board has recommended Sage's offer.
Sage chief executive Paul Walker promised in a statement that the U.K. firm will post strong first-quarter results, and said the acquisition will add to earnings in its first year.
The money to buy Best will come from a sale of new Sage stock. Sage will issue 43.7 million new shares, roughly 4 percent of its capital.
Sage was one of the top-performing U.K. stocks during 1999, the gain enough to push the shares into London's blue-chip FTSE 100 index in the final quarter of the year.
Sage stock gained a further 4.3 percent early Wednesday to reach 716 pence.
Sage and Best have already cooperated on developing sales channels in the United States, while Sage has promoted some Best products to clients as complementary to its own.
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Sage
Best Software
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