Cloudera To Go Private in $5.3B Buyout By Wall Street Firms

The long tale of Hadoop got another twist on Tuesday, June 1, when Cloudera announced that it has agreed to be acquired by a pair of investment firms for US$5.3 billion. The acquiring companies, Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) and KKR, made an all-cash offer that is equivalent to US$16 per share for Cloudera, a 24% premium as of Friday’s closing. The deal is expected to close in the second half of the year, resulting in Cloudera becoming a private company once again.

Ever since the calamitous summer of 2019, when Cloudera revenue suddenly dropped and its then-CEO was ousted, it has been suspected that the Cloudera board was seeking an exit. Rumors surfaced nearly a year ago when Bloomberg reported that the company was working with a financial advisor and was talking with potential buyers, including private equity firms. The Santa Clara, California software company would not confirm those talks to Datanami at the time.

Following completion of the acquisition, Cloudera will continue to operate as a private company. In fact, the company also announced two acquisitions on Tuesday, of Datacoral and Cazena. It also announced financial results for the first quarter of fiscal 2022, in what can only be described as the announcement trifecta.

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