McAfee entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by an investor group led by Advent International and Permira Advisers, Crosspoint Capital Partners, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, GIC Private, and a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA).
The investors will acquire all outstanding shares of McAfee common stock for USD 26.00 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately USD 12 billion on an equity basis and over USD 14 billion on an enterprise basis including repayment of McAfee debt. The price represents a premium of 22.6 percent over McAfee’s closing share price of USD 21.21 on 4 November, the last trading day prior to media reports regarding a potential sale of McAfee.
As a privately held company, McAfee said it plans to continue building on its track record of growth as a pure-play consumer cyber-security provider following the sale of its Enterprise business in July. The new investors will provide McAfee with both financial and operational resources to further enhance its consumer offering and capture the rapid growth in consumer demand for digital protection services.
The takeover is expected to close in the first half of 2022, subject to customary closing conditions, including, among others, approval by McAfee shareholders, receipt of regulatory approvals, and clearance by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
Existing shareholders Intel Americas and certain funds affiliated with TPG Global have agreed to vote in support of the deal, meaning 67.9 percent of McAfee stock in support. TPG took control of the firm in 2017, buying a majority stake from Intel. McAfee was later listed on the stock market in October 2020.
