Activant sold to private-equity firm

Activant Solutions Inc., Livermore, Calif., will be acquired by funds advised by Apax Partners, a global private-equity firm that invests in technology companies. Activant is currently owned by investment funds affiliated with Hellman & Friedman LLC, Thoma Bravo, LLC and JMI Equity, and by management. Activant had 2009 revenues of $378.9 milllion and 1,700 employees, according to information on its website.

Apax also announced today that it is has entered into a definitive agreement under which funds advised by Apax will acquire Epicor Software Corp., Irvine, Calif., a publicly traded company that trades on the NASDAQ under the ticker symbol "EPIC". Apax intends to combine Activant with Epicor to create one of the largest global providers of enterprise applications focused on the manufacturing, distribution, services and retail sectors. Following completion of the merger, the combined company will be called Epicor Software Corp. According to its 10-K, Epicor had 2010 sales of approximately $440.3 million.

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