Report: Citrix in Final Attempts to Find a Buyer Before Asset Sale

Two months ago, virtualization provider Citrix (CTXS) appeared to acquiesce to pressure from activist investor Elliott Management, agreeing to give up at least one board seat, position its GoTo webconferencing line for sale, and move aside longtime chief executive Mark Templeton.

Jesse Cohn, Elliott portfolio manager and head of U.S. equity activism, who in the last two years has compiled an impressive list of IT conquests, immediately joined the Citrix board, gaining a say-so in Citrix’s search for another independent board member.

Citrix also agreed to sell or spin off its GoTo webconferencing portfolio, apparently yielding to pressure from Elliott there as well.

Now Citrix is making a final move to sell itself before it’s forced to sell off assets, according to a Reuters report. The vendor’s market capitalization stands at about $11.6 billion.

According to the report, Citrix is newly engaged in buyout talks with private equity firms and some technology companies. Dell is said to have some interest, the report said.

Citrix reportedly has held off selling assets such as its GoTo webconferencing and associated services, including GoTo Meeting, waiting to see if it can snag a buyer at an acceptable valuation, the report said. Should Citrix fail to find a suitable buyer, the company will also consider selling other assets as well, Reuters sources said.

In the wake of Templeton’s exit, Citrix formed an Operations Committee headed by board member Robert Calderoni to review of its operations and capital structure, specifically its overall product portfolio and profit potential. As part of that deal, Calderoni was named executive chairman of the board with Thomas Bogan assuming the role of lead independent director.

The moves came amid a favorable FQ2 2015 in which the company posted a 94 percent year-over-year spike in net income to $103 million, or $0.64 a share, on a 2 percent revenue increase to $797 million.