Accelrys and Symyx announce merger of equals
Companies aim to creates a new leader in scientific informatics software
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SAN DIEGO and SANTA CLARA, Calif.—Seeking to establish "a new leader in scientific informatics software, Accelrys Inc. and Symyx Technologies Inc. have announced the signing of a merger agreement that is structured as a tax-free, all-stock merger of equals.
The deal was approved by both companies' boards of directors, and the merger is expected to be completed by the end of June 2010, subject to customary closing conditions, shareholder and regulatory approvals.
On a combined basis, Accelrys and Symyx have a pre-announcement market capitalization of approximately $335 million, cash reserves of approximately $150 million (net of transaction costs) and no debt. Under the terms of the agreement, Symyx shareholders will receive 0.7802 shares of Accelrys common stock for each share of Symyx. Following the completion of the merger, Accelrys and Symyx shareholders will each own approximately 50 percent of the combined company. After a period of initial integration, full-year net cost synergy savings are expected to be in the range of $10 million to $15 million. The transaction is expected to be materially accretive to non-GAAP earnings per share.
The company would be headquartered in San Diego, which is the home base of Accelrys right now, and additionally, Max Carnecchia, CEO of Accelrys, would serve as chief executive officer of the combined company. Isy Goldwasser, the CEO of Symyx Technologies, would serve a transitional role in the combined company.
"Scientific R&D organizations are challenged by the need to increase productivity and performance while grappling with budget pressures, restructuring, changes in scientific processes, and globally dispersed operations," says Carnecchia. "These forces are creating profound changes in the processes of scientific discovery and the way R&D teams interact. New software solutions are urgently required to address these fundamental changes, and the merger of Accelrys and Symyx creates a new, leading-force in the industry to address this situation."
"The merger of Accelrys and Symyx creates a differentiated company that is uniquely qualified to advance the state of the scientific informatics software industry," adds Goldwasser. "No other company combines our deep domain knowledge in chemistry, biology and materials science, enterprise software capabilities (in scientific data management, decision support and analytics), professional expert services, and a broad choice of partners. This powerful and synergistic combination with Accelrys allows us to meet the changing needs of our customers by delivering more agile, flexible and open scientific R&D environments through adaptive end-to-end workflow solutions."
The combined company will have more than 1,350 customers, including 29 of the top 30 biopharmaceutical companies, all five top chemical companies, all five top aerospace companies, three of the five top consumer packaged goods companies, a number of top U.S. federal government agencies and many top academic institutions.
The deal was approved by both companies' boards of directors, and the merger is expected to be completed by the end of June 2010, subject to customary closing conditions, shareholder and regulatory approvals.
On a combined basis, Accelrys and Symyx have a pre-announcement market capitalization of approximately $335 million, cash reserves of approximately $150 million (net of transaction costs) and no debt. Under the terms of the agreement, Symyx shareholders will receive 0.7802 shares of Accelrys common stock for each share of Symyx. Following the completion of the merger, Accelrys and Symyx shareholders will each own approximately 50 percent of the combined company. After a period of initial integration, full-year net cost synergy savings are expected to be in the range of $10 million to $15 million. The transaction is expected to be materially accretive to non-GAAP earnings per share.
The company would be headquartered in San Diego, which is the home base of Accelrys right now, and additionally, Max Carnecchia, CEO of Accelrys, would serve as chief executive officer of the combined company. Isy Goldwasser, the CEO of Symyx Technologies, would serve a transitional role in the combined company.
"Scientific R&D organizations are challenged by the need to increase productivity and performance while grappling with budget pressures, restructuring, changes in scientific processes, and globally dispersed operations," says Carnecchia. "These forces are creating profound changes in the processes of scientific discovery and the way R&D teams interact. New software solutions are urgently required to address these fundamental changes, and the merger of Accelrys and Symyx creates a new, leading-force in the industry to address this situation."
"The merger of Accelrys and Symyx creates a differentiated company that is uniquely qualified to advance the state of the scientific informatics software industry," adds Goldwasser. "No other company combines our deep domain knowledge in chemistry, biology and materials science, enterprise software capabilities (in scientific data management, decision support and analytics), professional expert services, and a broad choice of partners. This powerful and synergistic combination with Accelrys allows us to meet the changing needs of our customers by delivering more agile, flexible and open scientific R&D environments through adaptive end-to-end workflow solutions."
The combined company will have more than 1,350 customers, including 29 of the top 30 biopharmaceutical companies, all five top chemical companies, all five top aerospace companies, three of the five top consumer packaged goods companies, a number of top U.S. federal government agencies and many top academic institutions.
