Carbonite Stock Surges After Report Of Private Equity Buyer

The Boston-based cloud data protection and security company is reportedly exploring a sale with a private equity firm.

Carbonite stock is climbing following a report that the cloud data protection and security company is weighing a sale after seeing takeover interest from a private equity firm.

Carbonite stock rose 20 percent Friday evening after Bloomberg, citing sources familiar with the matter, reported that an unidentified private equity firm is looking to acquire the company. The Boston-based company is currently working with a financial adviser, according to Bloomberg, with the process still in the early stages and no final decision yet being made.

The company’s stock rose from around $13 per share Friday morning to $15.08 per share at the stock market’s close of Friday. Carbonite’s stock is currently up 2 percent as of Monday morning at $15.31 per share.

[Related: Carbonite Taps Webroot Execs For COO, CTO, Chief Product Officer Posts]

Carbonite declined to comment on the matter.

Carbonite shares have been slowly declining over the past 12 months, losing 70 percent of their value in the past year. One year ago, on Sept. 10, 2018, Carbonite stock was at $41.35 per share.

Shares fell in July after Carbonite CEO Mohamad Ali left the company to pursue a new opportunity as CEO of Framingham, Mass.-based industry analyst firm International Data Group (IDG). The company is also internally going through a large change as it integrates its $622 million acquisition of cloud-based security technology developer Webroot into its portfolio.

Last week, Carbonite brought three of Webroot’s top leaders into its C-suite to drive the integration process, product strategy and technology vision for the company. Webroot CFO John Post will lead the integration of the two companies as chief operating officer for Carbonite, Chad Bacher will serve as Carbonite’s chief product offer overseeing all aspects of the product organization, and Hal Lonas will become CTO for the combined companies.

Carbonite currently has a market cap of $529 million.