Bellevue-based work software company Smartsheet Inc. (NYSE: SMAR) is going private.
On Tuesday, the company announced it is being acquired by private equity firms Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners for about $8.4 billion in cash. Smartsheet said in a news release it expects the deal to close by the end of January.
"We are confident that Blackstone and Vista’s expertise and resources will help us ensure Smartsheet remains a great place to work where our employees thrive, while driving innovation and delivering even greater value for customers and stakeholders,” Smartsheet CEO Mark Mader said in the release.
Vista Equity and Blackstone are paying $56.50 per share, a roughly 41% premium to the volume-weighted average closing price of Smartsheet's stock for the 90 trading days ending on July 17, which was the last full trading day before reports surfaced of a potential Smartsheet acquisition. The price is a 16% premium to Smartsheet's highest closing stock price over the year ending July 17.
The deal includes a 45-day go-shop period in which Smartsheet can entertain other offers. The go-shop period ends Nov. 8. Smartsheet's board has approved the deal, but it still needs shareholder approval and regulatory clearances. The deal would take Smartsheet off the public markets, but it will continue to use the Smartsheet brand.
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Smartsheet hasn't yet responded to a request for additional comment.
Smartsheet, founded in 2005, helps clients manage projects. Its platform captures schedules, resources and plans, and its dashboard can display important project information across multiple views. According to its website, Smartsheet's clients include Uber, Alaska Airlines and Pfizer.
Smartsheet generated $276.4 million in revenue during its fiscal 2025 second quarter ending July 31, up 17% year over year.
New York City-based Blackstone has $1.1 trillion in assets under management. Its private equity arm has $145 billion in assets under management and 82 portfolio companies, including the dating app Bumble and the genealogy company Ancestry. Blackstone in February closed a $2.3 billion cash acquisition of the Seattle-based pet services marketplace Rover.
Austin, Texas-based Vista Equity, meanwhile, has more than $100 billion in assets under management. The firm in 2022 acquired tax software company Avalara for $8.4 billion, taking it private as well. Avalara, founded in 2004, had called Seattle its headquarters before deciding on Durham, North Carolina, as its headquarters earlier this year.
Vista Equity acquired Bellevue-based software company Apptio in 2019 for $1.94 billion, but then sold Apptio to IBM last year for $4.6 billion.
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