SS&C Technologies to be acquired by Carlyle Group for $982m

Headquartered in Connecticut and with offices throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia, SS&C provides front, middle, and back office technology to the buy-side investment community. The company has been growing fast on the back of an aggressive acquisition strategy. Already this year SS&C has acquired portfolio and account management firms Financial Interactive and Eisnerfast, and Canadian investment technology group FMC.

Under the terms of the deal, Sunshine Acquisition Corporation, an affiliate of The Carlyle Group, will pay $37.25 in cash for each SS&C share.

This is a 15.7% premium over the average closing price of SS&C's stock for the last 30 trading days. SS&C stock closed at $33 on Wednesday on Nasdaq. The aggregate consideration to be paid to SS&C stockholders and option holders is approximately $941 million.

News of the deal comes as SS&C reports record results for the quarter ended 30 June, 2005. Q2 revenues were $40.7 million, an increase of 66% from the $24.5 million for Q2 2004. Net income and operating income for Q2 were $6.6 million and $10.7 million, respectively, increases of 49% and 50% from the $4.4 million and $7.2 million for the second quarter of last year.

SS&C says its board of directors and an independent committee of the board of directors of SS&C have approved the Carlyle Group transaction and recommended to shareholders that they adopt the agreement.

Chairman and chief executive of SS&C William Stone will exchange certain of his SS&C shares for about 28% of the equity of Sunshine Acquisition Corporation.

The transaction is expected to be completed during the fourth quarter of 2005 and is subject to various conditions, including approval by SS&C shareholders.

Earlier this year a private equity consortium led by San Francisco-based Silver Lake Partners bought out SunGard Data Systems in a deal worth $11.3 billion.