Private equity firm STG to buy Avid Technology in $1.4 bln deal

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Cast and crew including actors Tom Cruise and Jennifer Connelly pose for a group photo at the premiere of 'Top Gun: Maverick' in London, Britain May 19, 2022. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls NEW YORK, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Avid Technology (AVID.O) said on Wednesday it had agreed to go private in an all-cash deal with an affiliate of Symphony Technology Group (STG) that valued the media editing software company at about $1.4 billion. Earlier on Wednesday, Reuters first reported that private equity firm STG was nearing a deal to acquire Avid, citing people familiar with the matter. Avid said STG will buy the software company for $27.05 per share in cash. Excluding debt, equity value of the deal comes up to $1.19 billion. The deal represents a 32% premium to Avid's closing share price on May 23, the day before Reuters reported the company was exploring a sale. Shares of Avid have risen nearly 30% since. Founded in 1987, Avid provides editing software and hardware primarily to entertainment industries. Its products, which have been used in the production of blockbuster movies such as "Top Gun: Maverick" and "Avatar: The Way of Water," include Media Composer, MediaCentral and AirSpeed. An activist hedge fund and Avid's largest shareholder, Impactive Capital LP, has representation on the Burlington, Massachusetts-based company's board after cutting a deal with the company in 2019. Palo Alto, California-based STG is a mid-market private equity firm focused on technology investments. Earlier this year, STG struck a deal to take Momentive Global Inc, the parent company of SurveyMonkey, private in a $1.5 billion deal. STG currently manages about $10 billion of assets and has invested in more than 50 companies in the technology industry. Reporting by Milana Vinn and Anirban Sen in New York; editing by Jonathan Oatis and Shinjini Ganguli Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.