Francisco Partners Mergers and Acquisitions Summary

Private Equity Firm Profile

In the last 3 years, Francisco Partners has acquired 9 companies. It has also invested in 5 others.

Francisco Partners’ most common sectors for investment aresoftware (35%) and information technology (19%) . The Firm’s most common investment types include growth capital (24%) and divestiture (22%). In total, Francisco Partners has invested in 25 US states and 11 different countries. Its largest (disclosed) acquisition occurred in 2023 when it acquired New Relic for $6.5B.

In the last 3 years, Francisco Partners has exited 3 companies. The Firm’s most common exit type is trade sale (61%). Francisco Partners’ largest (disclosed) exit occurred in 2021 when it sold Quest Software Systems for $5.4B.

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M&A Summary

  • M&A Total Activity219
    • M&A Buy Activity140
    • M&A Sell Activity79
  • Total Sectors Invested 18
  • Total Countries Invested 11
  • M&A Buy/Sell Connections 97
  • M&A Advisors 47

Francisco Partners

Francisco Partners Management, L.P.

One Letterman Drive, Building C Suite 410,
San Francisco, California 94129
United States
(415) 418-2900
www.franciscopartners.com
info@franciscopartners.com

Francisco Partners is a private equity firm focused exclusively on investments in technology and technology-enabled services. Specific areas of interest include semiconductors, capital equipment, electronics components, systems and manufacturing, IT services and business process outsourcing, communications, security and enterprise applications, and infrastructure software. Prospective investment situations include divisional buyouts, growth equity financings, acquisitions of private companies, sponsored mergers and acquisitions, and take-privates. Francisco Partners looks for opportunities where it can commit a minimum of $100 million per investment. Francisco Partners was formed in 1999 and is based in San Francisco, California.


Investment Criteria

Sectors of Interest: Business Services, Communications, Consumer Products, Digital Media, E-Commerce, Electrical Equipment, Electronics, Energy Services and Equipment, Financial Services, Healthcare Services, Information Technology, Internet Software and Services, Machinery, Manufacturing, Marketing, Medical Products, Safety/Security, Semiconductors, Software, Technology Hardware

Target Transaction Types: Buyout (LBO, MBO, MBI), Divestiture, Going Private, Growth Capital, Recapitalization, Special Situations/Distressed, Secondary Buyout

Geographic Preferences: East US, Midwest US, South US, West US, Canada, United Kingdom, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, Australia/New Zealand

Transaction Criteria Min Max
Target Revenue - -
Target EBITDA - -
Investment Size 100 -
Enterprise Value - -
values in millions of USD

M&A Summary

Buy vs Sell

Year ≤ '20 '21 '22 '23 '24 '25 T
Buy (5.2/yr) # 114 13 9 4 - - 140
vol $13.8B $4.0B $8.2B $26.0B
Sell (2.6/yr) # 66 10 3 - - - 79
vol $11.9B $10.0B $21.8B
  219

Most Recent M&A

Company Date Value Type
The Weather Company - Digital Assets 2023-08-22 - Divestiture
Atlanta, Georgia
New Relic, Inc. 2023-07-31 6.5B USD Going Private
San Francisco, California · www.newrelic.com
Macrobond Financial AB 2023-07-10 - Secondary Buyout
Malmö, Sweden · www.macrobond.com
Sumo Logic, Inc. 2023-02-09 1.7B USD Going Private
Redwood City, California · www.sumologic.com
Glorious LLC 2022-11-09 - Growth Capital
Austin, Texas · www.gloriousgaming.com
Trilliant Holdings, Inc. 2022-11-01 - Add-on Acquisition
Redwood City, California · www.trilliantinc.com
bswift LLC 2022-10-03 - Divestiture
Chicago, Illinois · www.bswift.com
Reciprocity, Inc. 2022-09-08 - Growth Capital
San Francisco, California · www.reciprocity.com
Kobalt Music Group Ltd. 2022-09-07 - Growth Capital
London, United Kingdom · www.kobaltmusic.com
Litmos US, L.P. 2022-08-17 - Divestiture
San Ramon, California · www.litmos.com
View All >>

Portfolio M&A

Company Acquired Add-On/Sale Date #
Forcepoint LLC 2020-10-26 Forcepoint G2CI 2023-07-10 1
Austin, Texas · www.forcepoint.com Austin, Texas
Renaissance Learning, Inc. 2018-05-03 GL Education Group Ltd. 2023-02-21 5
Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin · www.renaissance.com Brentford, United Kingdom · www.gl-education.com
Network Merchants, Inc. 2017-09-07 Agreement Express, Inc. 2022-12-06 4
Roselle, Illinois · www.nmi.com Vancouver, British Columbia · www.agreementexpress.com
SmartBear Software, Inc. 2017-05-03 Pactflow 2022-04-05 10
Beverly, Massachusetts · www.smartbear.com Sydney, Australia · www.pactflow.io
BARBRI, Inc. 2021-03-31 Legal Education Holdings, Inc. 2022-01-04 3
Dallas, Texas · www.barbri.com Saint Paul, Minnesota · www.westacademic.com
Perforce Software, Inc. 2018-01-10 BlazeMeter LLC 2021-09-30 7
Minneapolis, Minnesota · www.perforce.com Palo Alto, California · www.blazemeter.com
nShift Group AS 2021-08-23 Unifaun Group 2021-08-23 3
Oslo, Norway · www.nshift.com Stockholm, Sweden · www.unifaun.com
PayScale, Inc. 2019-04-25 Curo Compensation Ltd. 2021-08-18 2
Seattle, Washington · www.payscale.com Ottawa, Ontario · www.curocomp.com
Forcepoint LLC 2020-10-26 Deep-Secure Ltd. 2021-06-15 3
Austin, Texas · www.forcepoint.com Malvern, United Kingdom · www.deep-secure.com
LogMeIn, Inc. 2019-12-17 Bold360 2021-03-16 1
Boston, Massachusetts · www.logmeininc.com Boston, Massachusetts · www.bold360.com

M&A by Sector

Sector Current # Value All-time # Value
Software 22 (34%) 1.8B (8%) 49 (35%) 2.6B (10%)
Information Technology 10 (16%) 4.0B (18%) 26 (18%) 5.6B (22%)
Internet Software and Services 17 (27%) 16.8B (75%) 25 (18%) 17.0B (65%)
Technology Hardware 2 (3%) - 10 (7%) 743M (3%)
Education 5 (8%) - 7 (5%) -
Financial Services 2 (3%) - 4 (3%) -
Business Services - - 3 (2%) 71M (< 1%)
Semiconductors - - 3 (2%) -
Communications - - 2 (1%) -
E-Commerce 2 (3%) - 2 (1%) -
Healthcare Services 1 (2%) - 2 (1%) -
Information Services 2 (3%) - 2 (1%) -
Media 1 (2%) - 2 (1%) -
Digital Media - - 1 (1%) -
Electronics - - 1 (1%) -
Energy Services and Equipment - - 1 (1%) -
Machinery - - 1 (1%) -
Marketing - - 1 (1%) -
Total 64 $22.6B 142 $26.0B

Acquisitions By Geo

State/Country Current # Value All-time # Value
United States 55 (86%) 22.3B (98%) 118 (83%) 24.5B (94%)
  California 17 (27%) 12.2B (54%) 35 (25%) 12.8B (49%)
  New York 6 (9%) - 10 (7%) -
  Massachusetts 5 (8%) 4.3B (19%) 9 (6%) 4.3B (17%)
  Georgia 3 (5%) - 8 (6%) -
  Texas 4 (6%) - 7 (5%) -
  Washington 2 (3%) 325M (1%) 6 (4%) 476M (2%)
  Illinois 5 (8%) 1.5B (6%) 5 (4%) 1.5B (6%)
  Florida 2 (3%) - 5 (4%) -
  New Jersey 1 (2%) - 5 (4%) 420M (2%)
  North Carolina 2 (3%) - 4 (3%) -
  Pennsylvania 1 (2%) 4.0B (18%) 3 (2%) 4.0B (15%)
  Wisconsin 1 (2%) - 3 (2%) -
  Minnesota 1 (2%) - 3 (2%) -
  Michigan 1 (2%) - 3 (2%) -
  Ohio 1 (2%) - 2 (1%) -
  South Carolina 1 (2%) - 1 (1%) -
  Mississippi 1 (2%) - 1 (1%) -
  Indiana 1 (2%) - 1 (1%) -
  Maryland - - 1 (1%) 800M (3%)
  Virginia - - 1 (1%) 126M (< 1%)
  Oregon - - 1 (1%) 94M (< 1%)
  Arizona - - 1 (1%) -
  Utah - - 1 (1%) -
  Kansas - - 1 (1%) -
  Idaho - - 1 (1%) -
United Kingdom 2 (3%) 340M (2%) 7 (5%) 340M (1%)
Israel 2 (3%) - 6 (4%) 645M (2%)
Australia 1 (2%) - 3 (2%) 224M (1%)
Norway 1 (2%) - 2 (1%) 181M (1%)
Germany 1 (2%) - 1 (1%) -
Netherlands 1 (2%) - 1 (1%) -
Sweden 1 (2%) - 1 (1%) -
France - - 1 (1%) 77M (< 1%)
Canada - - 1 (1%) -
  Ontario - - 1 (1%) -
Switzerland - - 1 (1%) -
Domestic 55 (86%) 22.3B (98%) 118 (83%) 24.5B (94%)
Cross-border 9 (14%) 340M (2%) 24 (17%) 1.5B (6%)
Total 64 $22.6B 142 $26.0B

Acquisitions by Deal Type

Type Current # Value All-time # Value
Growth Capital 17 (27%) - 33 (23%) -
Divestiture 16 (25%) 5.8B (26%) 31 (22%) 6.9B (27%)
Buyout (LBO, MBO, MBI) 4 (6%) - 27 (19%) 382M (1%)
Secondary Buyout 15 (23%) 665M (3%) 21 (15%) 665M (3%)
Going Private 5 (8%) 16.1B (71%) 15 (11%) 17.9B (69%)
Stake Purchase 3 (5%) - 5 (4%) -
Consolidation 2 (3%) - 3 (2%) -
PIPE - - 3 (2%) -
Recapitalization - - 2 (1%) 130M (1%)
Add-on Acquisition 1 (2%) - 1 (1%) -
Venture 1 (2%) - 1 (1%) -
Total 64 $22.6B 142 $26.0B

Exits by Deal Type

Type Total # Value
Trade Sale - Public Company 32 (41%) 10.4B (51%)
Secondary Sale 20 (25%) 7.3B (36%)
Trade Sale 17 (22%) 183M (1%)
IPO 6 (8%) -
Merger 2 (3%) 600M (3%)
1 (1%) 1.7B (8%)
Divestiture 1 (1%) -
Total 79 $20.2B

Top M&A Advisors

Financial Deals
Barclays Investment Bank
 7
Raymond James - Investment Banking
 6
Jefferies
 5
Legal Deals
Kirkland & Ellis
 36
Paul Hastings LLP
 13
Shearman & Sterling LLP
 8

Deal Values

buy # Total
> $1B 6 $21.4B
$100M to $1B 15 $4.2B
< $100M 5 $419M
TOTAL $26.0B
Largest New Relic, Inc.
$6.5B (2023-07-31)
sell # Total
> $1B 8 $15.6B
$100M to $1B 16 $6.2B
< $100M 1 $28M
TOTAL $21.8B
Largest Quest Software Systems, Inc.
$5.4B (2021-11-29)

M&A Connections

Deals
Acquired from
Investor(s)
16%
23 (16%)
Strategic(s)
22%
31 (22%)
Exited to
Investor(s)
25%
20 (25%)
Strategic(s)
66%
52 (66%)

Investor Summary

Investor Type

Private Equity Firm

Size

Mega

PE Assets

45.0B USD

Established

1999

Specialist/Generalist

Specialist

Leadership

Dipanjan Deb

Co-Founder & CEO

Benjamin Ball

Co-Founder & Partner

Sanford Robertson

Co-Founder & Partner Emeritus

Neil Garfinkel

Co-Founder & Senior Advisor

John Herr

CFO

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