Nonprofit accounting software vendor Blackbaud has struck a deal to acquire rival Kintera for $1.12 per share, or approximately $46 million.
Kintera, which specializes in on-demand software for nonprofits, had been facing financial pressures lately, including the threat of a delisting notice from Nasdaq (see
Kintera has been struggling to recover from recent financial losses. The company managed to reduce its losses last year by 52 percent, but still lost $15.8 million in 2007. The company posted a net loss last quarter of $4.3 million.
Blackbaud plans to finance the tender offer with cash and its credit facility. After the deal closes around July 2, accoding to spokesperson Tara Plappert, Kintera will operate as a division of Blackbaud from its home base in San Diego, where 146 of its 240 employees are located. Blackbaud spokesperson Melanie Milonas said the company plans no layoffs. Kintera will continue to be led by its current CEO, Richard LaBarbera (pictured), who previously worked for IBM, Sybase and other high-tech companies.
"Our focus will now turn exclusively to better meeting the needs of our customers and collaborating with Blackbaud to leverage the investment they are making to better serve the nonprofit sector," he said in a statement.
LaBarbera will report to Blackbaud CEO Marc Chardon, who said the acquisition would help his company expand its online offerings. Kintera's Sphere technology and Friends Asking Friends system will join Blackbaud's The Raiser's Edge and NetCommunity products, but it will probably take a few years for them to be integrated. "We see them as complementary in the short term," said Milonas.
