Corel: going private, again?


Corel Corporation (Nasdaq: CREL) is a long-term player in the software business. It has products like WinZip, CorelDRAW, iGrafx, WordPerfect, and so on. However, with competitors like Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq: MSFT) and even Google, Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG), it's been particularly tough.

Well, Corel's largest investor (owning 69%), Vector Capital, has expressed interest in taking the company private. Keep in mind that Vector took Corel private back in 2003 (at $1.05 per share).

As for the current proposal, it's for $11 per share (the 52-week high on Corel is $14.37). And, Corel has now hired a financial advisor, Genuity Capital Markets, to evaluate the proposal as well as look at other alternatives.



I think this is really just "going through the motions" process (and making sure fiduciary responsibilities are met). Simply put, I don't think there will be much interest in Corel from other bidders. The credit crunch will make it difficult for rival private equity firms to come up with a bid. Plus, there don't seem to be any ideal strategic buyers.

After all, the stock price is trading at only $10.75 right now.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates MergerBook.com.

Symbol Lookup
IndexesChangePrice
DJIA+6.5112,890.46
NASDAQ+11.372,927.23
S&P 500+1.991,351.95

Last updated: February 09, 2012: 06:36 PM

Hot Stocks

General Electric

19.13-0.11(-0.57)

Alcoa

10.64-0.03(-0.28)

Apple Inc

493.17+16.49(+3.46)

Google Inc 'A'

611.46+1.61(+0.26)

Bank of America

8.18+0.05(+0.62)

Wal-Mart Stores

61.96+0.34(+0.55)

Exxon Mobil Corp

84.88-0.44(-0.52)

Ford

12.69-0.15(-1.17)

Citigroup

33.66-0.57(-1.67)

IBM

193.13+0.18(+0.09)

Yahoo

16.00+0.22(+1.39)

Starbucks

49.20+0.48(+0.99)

Microsoft

30.77+0.11(+0.36)

Home Depot

45.27+0.10(+0.22)

DailyFinance Headlines

Benzinga Headlines

TheFlyOnTheWall.com Headlines

BioHealth Investor Headlines

WalletPop Headlines

DailyFinance BlackBerry App

My Portfolios

Track your stocks here!

Find out why more people track their portfolios on AOL Money & Finance then anywhere else.

BloggingStocks Partners

More from AOL Money & Finance

BioHealth Investor Headlines

Page Loaded in 1328830570299 ms.