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Oracle acquires Eloqua for $871M

by Demitri Diakantonis  |  Published December 20, 2012 at 12:09 PM
Oracle Corp. announced Thursday, Dec. 20, that it agreed to acquire cloud-based marketing software company Eloqua Inc. for about $871 million, or $23.50 per share, net of cash.

Vienna, Va.-based Eloqua, which just went public in August, makes cloud-based software that tracks marketing and consumers trends. The target is backed by private equity firms JMI Equity Fund LP, Bay Partners and Bessemer Venture Partners.

"Modern marketing practices are driving revenue growth and is a critical area of investment for companies today," Oracle development executive vice president Thomas Kurian said in a statement.

Eloqua has done work for a handful of NBA teams including the Golden State Warriors, Utah Jazz and Miami Heat as well as some software companies including McAfee Inc. and Rosetta Stone Inc. The target also has clients in the pharmaceutical, financial services and media sectors.

"Together with Oracle, we expect to accelerate the pace of the modern marketing revolution and help our customers transform the way they market, sell, support and serve their customers" Eloqua chairman and CEO Joe Payne said in a statement.

The deal continues Oracle CEO Larry Ellison's push to add cloud-computing software through acquisitions. Late last year, Oracle bought RightNow Technologies Inc. for $43 per share, or roughly $1.5 billion. In February, Oracle acquired Taleo Corp. in a $1.9 billion deal designed to boost its cloud-based human resources offerings. Last month, Oracle rolled up Instantis Inc. and DataRaker Inc. for undisclosed terms.

In October, Oracle launched $5 billion worth of senior notes to use for possible acquisitions.

Demand for cloud software companies continues to remain high. Earlier this month Paul Singer's Elliott Associates LP bid $2.3 billion for Detroit's Compuware Corp., and last month Cisco Systems Inc. acquired privately held Cariden Technologies Inc. for $141 million in cash.

Oracle and Eloqua expect to complete the transaction in the first half of 2013, pending regulatory and shareholder approval. Both boards have already approved the deal.

Oracle shares opened four cents higher, at $34.13, on Thursday, giving it a market capitalization of about $165 billion. Eloqua shares opened 31% higher, to $23.51, with its market cap near $809 million.
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Tags: Bay Partners | Bessemer Venture Partners | Cisco Systems | Eloqua Inc. | exit | JMI Equity Fund LP | Oracle Corp. marketing software | private equity | technology

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