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Do PE Acquisitions of Public Startups Imply We've Hit a Pricing Bottom?

Tom Tunguz

But no relationship exists between the Nasdaq’s price level & multiples. Zendesk & Anaplan announced their acquisitions within days of each other & their multiples bound the outer edges of the range: 5.1x & 13.4x. The more free cash the company produces, the lower the acquisition multiple. Growth Rate.

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Acquisitions — If You Do Sell, Try to Make Sure It’s At a Local Maximum

SaaStr

And it reminded me of a stretch when over 6 months or so, I met with a series of entrepreneurs that turned down pretty attractive acquisition offers, relatively early in their lifecycle: SaaS Co. #1 At other times, the price can be crappy. Every Big Tech company has a budget for sub-$100m acquisitions. Vaguely. But Not Really.

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Dear SaaStr: What are Some Strategies to Get a Higher Price in an Acquisition?

SaaStr

What are strategies to justify a higher valuation for my company in an acquisition? The easiest “strategies” to get a higher price in an acquisition — which admittedly are very hard to deploy quickly : Raise a venture round at a high price. They can just pass because it looks too complicated to get to an acceptable price.

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Zendesk and Anaplan: A Tale of Two Very Similar, And Very Different, $10B SaaS Acquisitions

SaaStr

Not only were the prices basically identical, but so were a few other facts: Both had a nice, roughly similar premium price (usually necessary to get a deal done to acquire a public company): Anaplan a 41% premium to their trade price, and Zendesk 34%. You can’t argue that when they paid 40% higher than the public share price.

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What the $6B Coupa Acquisition Means for Software Startups

Tom Tunguz

The acquisition is notable for three reasons. First, the premium to the public price is 31%. Third, it’s the most substantive acquisition to announce this year after Figma’s announced its sale to Adobe. As Michael Mauboussin writes in Expectations Investing , there’s information in price. NTM revenues.

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The Implications of Increased Regulatory Scrutiny for Startup Acquisitions

Tom Tunguz

Similar questions have surrounded Microsoft’s acquisition of Blizzard; The US Department of Justice seeks to unwind the Google/DoubleClick merger ; British regulatory bodies forced Facebook to reverse its Giphy acquisition. At what strike price? The FTC reportedly will sue to stop Adobe from acquiring Figma.

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Dear SaaStr: When Should a CEO Walk Away From an Acquisition Offer?

SaaStr

Q: When should a CEO walk away from an acquisition? I’ve walked from acquisitions where I, to be honest, did want the money but still walked. You have (at least) 4 constituencies in an acquisition: You and your co-founders. The post Dear SaaStr: When Should a CEO Walk Away From an Acquisition Offer? Your employees.