Merger Arbitrage Mondays – Citrix To Be Acquired By Vista And Elliott

  • February 7, 2022

Merger activity remained steady last week with two new deals announced and five deals completed.

Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Citrix Systems (CTXS) is a multinational cloud computing and virtualization technology company. The company provides server, application and desktop virtualization, networking, software as a service (SaaS), and cloud computing technologies. Citrix began its operations by developing remote access products for Microsoft operating systems, licensing source code from Microsoft, and has had a long-standing partnership with the company.

The products offered by Citrix were extensively relied upon during the pandemic as businesses sought options to keep remote workforces connected to their central operations. The company, however, fell deeply out of favor last year.

(Source: Citrix website)

We added Citrix as a potential deal in the works on September 15, 2021, when Bloomberg reported that the company was working with advisers and was weighing whether to sell itself, after experiencing a sharp drop in its share price last year. The price of Citrix at the time of this announcement was $112.47. Citrix previously tried to sell itself in 2017, with private equity firms Bain Capital, Carlyle Group and Thoma Bravo as potential bidders at that time.

Elliott Investment Management and Vista Equity Partners started considering a joint bid for Citrix around the end of last year and reached a definitive agreement to acquire the company on January 31, 2022 in an all cash deal valued at $16.5 billion or $104 per share in cash, representing a premium of 30%. According to the agreement, Vista and Evergreen (an affiliate of Elliott) intend to combine Citrix and TIBCO Software, one of Vista’s portfolio companies. According to data compiled by Bloomberg, this deal values Citrix at about 24.8 times its TTM EBITA.

You can find all the active deals listed below in our Merger Arbitrage Tool (MAT) that automatically updates itself during market hours.

There was one new deal announced in the Deals in the Works section last week. On February 1, 2022,  Cedar Fair (FUN) received an unsolicited non-binding proposal from SeaWorld Entertainment (SEAS) for $3.4 billion or $60 per share. Six Flags Entertainment (SIX) could be a potential bidder for Cedar as well. Back in 2019, Cedar had turned down a $70 per share deal from Six Flags.

SPAC Arbitrage

There were four new SPAC IPOs filed and five new SPAC combinations announced last week. You can find the new SPAC IPO announcements in our SPACs tool here.

  1. Kalera AS, a preeminent leafy green vertical farming company and Agrico Acquisition Corp. (RICOentered into a definitive merger agreement.
  2. Comera Life Sciences, a company which is developing a new generation of bio-innovative biologic medicines to improve patient access, safety, and convenience, and OTR Acquisition Corp. (OTRAentered into a business combination agreement.
  3. MariaDB Corporation Ab, an open source database software company announced its intention to become a publicly listed company with Angel Pond Holdings Corporation (POND).
  4. Calidi Biotherapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company that is pioneering the development of cell-based delivery of oncolytic viruses, and Edoc Acquisition (ADOC), a blank check company organized to acquire or merge with one or more businesses, have entered into a definitive merger agreement.
  5. Wag Labs, an American pet services marketplace company powering a mobile-first technology platform that enables on-demand and scheduled dog walking, training, and other pet care services, and CHW (CHWAannounced the signing of a definitive business combination agreement.

Weekly Spread Changes:

The table below shows weekly spread changes between January 28 and February 4, 2022.

SymbolQuoteAcquiring
Company
Acquiring
Company Quote
Current
Spread
Last Week
Spread
Spread Change
Weekly
Deal
Type
AJRD37.05Lockheed Martin Corporation (LMT)389.3337.65%32.67%4.98%All Cash
PVG13.7Newcrest Mining Limited (NCMGY)16.06-5.23%-9.76%4.53%All Stock
MNTV17.05Zendesk (ZEN)97.6828.90%25.38%3.52%All Stock
JOBS48.18Garnet Faith Limited (N/A)64.07%60.67%3.40%All Cash
RRD10.7Chatham Asset Management, LLC (N/A)1.40%-1.45%2.85%All Cash
NSEC15.892VR Insurance Holdings, Inc. (N/A)2.88%4.47%-1.59%All Cash
AZPN144.83Emerson Electric Co. (EMR)95.3810.47%12.40%-1.93%Special Conditions
PNM45.45Avangrid, Inc. (AGR)45.510.67%13.06%-2.39%All Cash
ZNGA9.11Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (TTWO)1758.23%13.73%-5.50%Special Conditions
NES2.32Select Energy Services, Inc. (WTTR)7.39-18.74%2.20%-20.94%All Stock

Deal Statistics:

Total Number of Deals Closed in 202219
Total Number of Deals Not Completed in 20221
Total Number of Pending Deals
Cash Deals40
Stock Deals20
Stock & Cash Deals7
Special Conditions8
Total Number of Pending Deals75
Total Deal Size$562.43 billion

New Deals:

  1. The acquisition of Citrix Systems (CTXS) by Vista Equity Partners and Elliott Investment Management for $16.5 billion or $104 per share in cash.
  2. The acquisition of SOC Telemed (TLMD) by Patient Square Capital for $106.42 million or $3.00 per share in cash.

Deal Updates:

  1. On January 31, 2022, shareholders of CMC Materials (CCMPapproved the company’s merger with Entegris (ENTG) at a special meeting of shareholders.
  2. January 31, 2022: According to Bloomberg, The U.S. antitrust review of Microsoft Corp’s (MSFT) proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard (ATVI) will be handled by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
  3. On February 1, 2022, shareholders in the pay-per-mile auto insurer, Metromile (MILEgave their approval to the impending acquisition of the company by Lemonade (LMND).
  4. On February 1, 2022, CyrusOne (CONE) announced that its stockholders approved the previously announced merger pursuant to which KKR and Global Infrastructure Partners, will acquire all outstanding shares of common stock of the Company.
  5. On February 1, 2022, NeoPhotonics stockholders approved the merger agreement under which Lumentum Holdings (LITE) will acquire NeoPhotonics (NPTN).
  6. On February 1, 2022, Agnico Eagle Mines Limited (AEM) and Kirkland Lake Gold (KL) announced that approval has been received from Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board regarding the proposed merger of equals between Agnico Eagle and Kirkland Lake Gold.
  7. On February 2, 2022,  R. R. Donnelley & Sons Company (RRD) announced that the unsolicited non-binding and conditional “Alternative Acquisition Proposal” from a strategic party has been withdrawn.
  8. On February 2, 2022, shareholders of Arena Pharmaceuticals (ARNAapproved the company’s merger with Pfizer (PFE) at a special meeting of shareholders.

Closed Deals:

  1. The acquisition of Santander Consumer USA Holdings (SC) by Santander Holdings USA on January 31, 2022. It took 160 days for this deal to be completed.
  2. The acquisition of Great Western Bancorp (GWB) by First Interstate BancSystem (FIBK) on February 1, 2022. It took 138 days for this deal to be completed.
  3. The acquisition of Oasis Midstream Partners (OMP) by Crestwood Equity Partners (CEQP) on February 1, 2022. It took 98 days for this deal to be completed.
  4. The acquisition of Triple-S Management Corporation (GTS) by GuideWell Mutual Holding Corporation on February 1, 2022. It took 161 days for this deal to be completed.
  5. The acquisition of Sterling Bancorp (STL) by Webster Financial Corporation (WBS) on February 1, 2022. It took 288 days for this deal to be completed.

Top 10 deals with largest spreads:

SymbolAnnounced
Date
Acquiring
Company
Closing
Price
Last
Price
Closing
Date
ProfitAnnualized
Profit
JOBS06/21/2021Garnet Faith Limited (N/A)$79.05$48.1803/31/202264.07%441.25%
AJRD12/20/2020Lockheed Martin Corporation (LMT)$51.00$37.0503/31/202237.65%259.30%
CHNG01/06/2021UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH)$25.75$19.7606/30/202230.31%76.84%
MNTV10/28/2021Zendesk (ZEN)$21.98$17.0506/30/202228.90%73.26%
TMX12/14/2021Rentokil Initial plc (RTOKY)$55.00$42.9912/31/202227.94%31.09%
ATVI01/18/2022Microsoft Corporation (MSFT)$95.00$79.2503/31/202319.87%17.35%
BRG12/20/2021Blackstone Real Estate (N/A)$29.85$26.5206/30/202212.56%31.83%
SAFM08/09/2021Cargill and Continental Grain Company (N/A)$203.00$181.6701/31/202211.74%-714.25%
PNM10/21/2020Avangrid, Inc. (AGR)$50.30$45.4506/30/202210.67%27.05%
AZPN10/11/2021Emerson Electric Co. (EMR)$160.00$144.8306/30/202210.47%26.55%

List of all pending deals:

The list of all pending deals is only available to InsideArbitrage Premium and Plus members.

TargetAnnounced
Date
AcquirerDeal
Type
Closing
Value
Deal
Price
Last
Price
Target VolumeEstimated
Closing Date
ReturnAnnualized
Return
+JOBS6/21/21Garnet Faith Limited (N/A)All Cash$3.63 B$79.05$48.18158,3663/31/2264.07%449.74%
+AJRD12/20/20Lockheed Martin Corporation (LMT)All Cash$3.79 B$51.00$37.051,588,8663/31/2237.65%264.29%
+CHNG1/06/21UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH)All Cash$13.28 B$25.75$19.763,445,5926/30/2230.31%77.37%
+MNTV10/28/21Zendesk (ZEN)All Stock$4.21 B$21.98$17.05654,5526/30/2228.90%73.77%
+TMX12/14/21Rentokil Initial plc (RTOKY)Special Conditions$6.7 B$55.00$42.99565,33412/31/2227.94%31.18%
+ATVI1/18/22Microsoft Corporation (MSFT)All Cash$68.7 B$95.00$79.2512,841,6363/31/2319.87%17.40%
+BRG12/20/21Blackstone Real Estate (N/A)Special Conditions$3.6 B$29.85$26.52398,1226/30/2212.56%32.05%
+SAFM8/09/21Cargill and Continental Grain Company (N/A)All Cash$4.49 B$203.00$181.67100,9931/31/2211.74%0.00%
+PNM10/21/20Avangrid, Inc. (AGR)All Cash$8.05 B$50.30$45.45669,0846/30/2210.67%27.24%
+AZPN10/11/21Emerson Electric Co. (EMR)Special Conditions$12.34 B$160.00$144.83277,4616/30/2210.47%26.74%
+SJR3/15/21Rogers Communications Inc. (RCI)Special Conditions$26 B$32.40$29.49362,3956/30/229.87%25.19%
+ARNA12/13/21Pfizer Inc. (PFE)All Cash$4.69 B$100.00$91.541,299,4086/30/229.24%23.59%
+COHR3/25/21II-VI Incorporated (IIVI)Cash Plus Stock$6.84 B$276.49$254.98198,3531/31/228.44%0.00%
+ZNGA1/10/22Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (TTWO)Special Conditions$12.7 B$9.86$9.1141,458,6426/30/228.23%21.01%
+EXTN1/24/22Enerflex Ltd. (EFX.TO)All Stock$735 M$6.10$5.64438,4219/30/228.23%12.78%
+ZGNX1/19/22UCB (N/A)Special Conditions$1.28 B$28.00$26.092,257,4256/30/227.32%18.69%
+TLMD2/03/22Patient Square Capital (N/A)All Cash$106.42 M$3.00$2.833,793,1756/30/226.01%15.33%
+STXB11/19/21Simmons First National Corporation (SFNC)All Stock$581 M$29.34$27.8997,1966/30/225.18%13.23%
+VNE10/04/21Qualcomm Incorporated (QCOM)All Cash$3.87 B$37.00$35.31,875,5216/30/224.82%12.29%
+CCMP12/15/21Entegris, Inc. (ENTG)Cash Plus Stock$6.5 B$190.93$183.36395,62012/31/224.13%4.61%
+NPTN11/04/21Lumentum Holdings Inc. (LITE)All Cash$745.24 M$16.00$15.4697,05712/31/223.90%4.35%
+CERN12/20/21Oracle Corporation (ORCL)All Cash$28.4 B$95.00$91.463,063,70112/31/223.87%4.32%
+XENT8/06/21Medtronic plc (MDT)All Cash$1.1 billion$28.25$27.2305,3953/31/223.86%27.10%
+PTRS11/04/21OceanFirst Financial Corp. (OCFC)Special Conditions$186 M$10.38$10.04567,9256/30/223.33%8.51%
+PBCT2/22/21M&T Bank Corporation (MTB)All Stock$7.6 B$21.19$20.594,018,0193/31/222.90%20.39%
+NSEC1/26/22VR Insurance Holdings, Inc. (N/A)All Cash$41.4 M$16.35$15.8924,3366/30/222.88%7.36%
+OCDX12/23/21Quidel Corporation (QDEL)Cash Plus Stock$8.33 B$17.57$17.151,619,0076/30/222.45%6.26%
+TSC10/20/21Raymond James Financial, Inc. (RJF)Cash Plus Stock$1.1 B$33.74$32.98139,4526/30/222.30%5.88%
+MILE11/08/21Lemonade (LMND)All Stock$201.47 M$1.51$1.483,509,7106/30/222.25%5.74%
+ISBC7/28/21Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (CFG)Cash Plus Stock$3.5 B$17.51$17.131,189,4976/30/222.23%5.70%
+FBC4/26/21New York Community Bancorp, Inc. (NYCB)All Stock$2.6 B$45.89$44.93259,3253/31/222.14%15.04%
+FRTA2/22/21Quikrete Holdings, Inc. (N/A)All Cash$2.74 B$24.00$23.52247,2753/31/222.04%14.32%
+XLNX10/27/20Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD)All Stock$33.43 B$213.01$209.023,061,8853/31/221.91%13.41%
+LEVL11/04/21First Merchants Corporation (FRME)Cash Plus Stock$323.5 M$41.17$40.4724,4066/30/221.74%4.44%
+BPMP12/20/21BP p.l.c. (BP)All Stock$2.45 B$18.91$18.59469,6573/31/221.70%11.93%
+ROG11/02/21DuPont de Nemours, Inc. (DD)All Cash$5.2 B$277.00$272.5226,4886/30/221.65%4.22%
+CTXS1/31/22Vista Equity Partners and Elliott Investment Management LP (N/A)All Cash$16.5 B$104.00$102.362,342,9376/30/221.60%4.09%
+RRD12/14/21Chatham Asset Management, LLC (N/A)All Cash$2.3 B$10.85$10.72,250,6116/30/221.40%3.58%
+VRS12/19/21BillerudKorsnäs AB (N/A)All Cash$825 M$27.00$26.65243,2486/30/221.31%3.35%
+NUAN4/12/21Microsoft Corp (MSFT)All Cash$19.7 B$56.00$55.373,168,0403/31/221.14%7.99%
+FLOW12/13/21Lone Star Funds (N/A)All Cash$3.8 B$86.50$85.58426,7596/30/221.08%2.74%
+WBT7/14/21Ali Holding S.r.l. (N/A)All Cash$4.8 B$24.00$23.76652,7981/31/221.01%0.00%
+PSXP10/27/21Phillips 66 (PSX)All Stock$14.5 B$44.42$43.98527,1263/31/221.00%7.02%
+ATC7/01/21MKS Instruments, Inc. (MKSI)Cash Plus Stock$6.5 B$24.36$24.13390,1383/31/220.96%6.73%
+UMPQ10/12/21Columbia Banking System, Inc. (COLB)All Stock$4.5 B$21.03$20.83841,5506/30/220.94%2.40%
+ACBI7/23/21SouthState Corporation (SSB)All Stock$542 M$31.20$30.91134,8153/31/220.93%6.53%
+CONE11/15/21KKR and Global Infrastructure Partners (N/A)All Cash$15 B$90.50$89.71,888,4606/30/220.89%2.28%
+FOE5/11/21Prince International Corporation (N/A)All Cash$2.1 B$22.00$21.82378,4703/31/220.82%5.79%
+STFC7/12/21Liberty Mutual Holding Company Inc. (N/A)All Cash$2.48 B$52.00$51.5834,1393/31/220.81%5.72%
+GSKY9/15/21The Goldman Sachs Group (GS)All Stock$2.24 B$11.03$10.941,438,2973/31/220.80%5.65%
+EPAY12/17/21Thoma Bravo (N/A)All Cash$2.6 B$57.00$56.561,144,9376/30/220.78%1.99%
+INFO11/30/20S&P Global (SPGI)All Stock$44 B$117.60$116.761,569,9656/30/220.72%1.84%
+VG11/22/21Ericsson (ERIC)All Cash$6.2 B$21.00$20.851,350,2676/30/220.72%1.84%
+MCFE11/08/21Investor Group comprised of Advent, Permira, Crosspoint Capital, CPP Investments, GIC and ADIA (N/A)All Cash$14 B$26.00$25.84866,7316/30/220.62%1.58%
+MIME12/07/21Permira (N/A)All Cash$5.8 B$80.00$79.51589,8406/30/220.62%1.57%
+APR1/10/22Owens & Minor, Inc. (OMI)All Cash$1.62 B$37.50$37.28157,0806/30/220.59%1.51%
+FTSI10/22/21ProFrac Holdings (N/A)All Cash$407.5 M$26.52$26.3832,3243/31/220.53%3.73%
+VCRA1/06/22Stryker (SYK)All Cash$3.09 B$79.25$78.841,978,5993/31/220.52%3.65%
+CSLT1/05/22Vera Whole Health (N/A)All Cash$261.35 M$2.05$2.04373,4043/31/220.49%3.44%
+ESBK10/04/21Community Bank System, Inc. (CBU)All Cash$82.8 M$23.10$22.995,3263/31/220.48%3.36%
+KRA9/27/21DL Chemical Co., Ltd. (N/A)All Cash$2.5 B$46.50$46.35188,7556/30/220.32%0.83%
+MGP8/04/21VICI Properties Inc. (VICI)All Stock$17.2 billion$38.44$38.32460,2496/30/220.31%0.79%
+PAE10/25/21Amentum Government Services Holdings LLC (N/A)All Cash$1.9 B$10.05$10.02414,1953/31/220.30%2.10%
+GCP12/06/21Saint-Gobain (N/A)All Cash$2.3 B$32.00$31.91263,78112/31/220.28%0.31%
+ANAT8/09/21Brookfield Asset Management Reinsurance Partners Ltd. (BAMR)All Cash$5.1 B$190.00$189.564,0866/30/220.26%0.67%
+GNOG8/09/21DraftKings Inc. (DKNG)All Stock$1.52 B$7.99$7.97522,0963/31/220.25%1.75%
+MNR11/05/21Industrial Logistics Properties Trust (ILPT)All Cash$3.72 B$21.00$20.95465,7386/30/220.24%0.61%
+TACO12/06/21Jack in the Box Inc. (JACK)All Cash$575 M$12.51$12.49339,0363/31/220.16%1.12%
+KL9/28/21Agnico Eagle Mines Limited (AEM)All Stock$9.53 B$38.25$38.211,069,0473/31/220.10%0.67%
+FMBI6/01/21Old National Bancorp (ONB)All Stock$2.86 B$20.98$20.99611,8553/01/22-0.03%-0.56%
+IHC11/09/21Geneve Holdings, Inc. (N/A)All Cash$813.9 M$57.00$57.0312,8803/31/22-0.05%-0.37%
+CPLG11/08/21Highgate and Cerberus Capital Management, L.P. (N/A)Special Conditions$1.5 B$15.65$15.711,240,8043/31/22-0.38%-2.68%
+ABTX11/10/21CBTX, Inc. (CBTX)All Stock$1.5 B$40.79$42.5337,5586/30/22-4.08%-10.42%
+PVG11/09/21Newcrest Mining Limited (NCMGY)All Stock$2.8 B$12.98$13.7432,8353/31/22-5.23%-36.74%
+NES12/13/21Select Energy Services, Inc. (WTTR)All Stock$45 M$1.89$2.3245,6883/31/22-18.74%-131.55%

Conclusion:

Six active deals received shareholder approvals last week and the bidding war for R. R. Donnelley & Sons Company (RRD) has come to a rest for now after the company announced that the “Alternative Acquisition Proposal” from a strategic party has been withdrawn. On the regulatory front, Bloomberg reported that the FTC will be handling the antitrust review of Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The spread on the deal is almost 20%, reflecting market sentiment that the deal is likely to face significant regulatory challenges.

SPAC activity has not picked up much with only four new SPAC IPOs filed last week. SPAC business combinations continue to grow on the other hand. We have introduced a new feature in our monthly Special Situations newsletter, where we will be looking at SPAC Business Combinations for potential short ideas. 

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Disclaimer: I have long positions in Arena Pharmaceuticals (ARNA) and Bluerock Residential Growth REIT (BRG). Please do your own due diligence before buying or selling any securities mentioned in this article. We do not warrant the completeness or accuracy of the content or data provided in this article.