Infogroup Sale 'Imminent'

ORC owner Infogroup is in final negotiations to be acquired by CCMP Capital Advisors, according to reports in the Omaha World-Herald.

According to the paper (www.omaha.com ), sources close to the negotiations said New York equity firm CCMP submitted the top bid of about $494.7m, or $8.60 per share. Stock closed at $7.96 per share yesterday, leaving the offer representing a premium of 8 percent.

CEO Bill Fairfield and CCMP's spokesperson both declined to comment at this stage.

The firm said in November that it was 'evaluating its operations and prospects to determine what is in the best interests of all shareholders'. In the months since, Dun & Bradstreet are said to have been among those bidding for the company, but to have pulled out earlier this month, causing bids to drop from between $9 and $10 per share to between $8.25 and $9.

The World-Herald says Infogroup board members are to meet Sunday to approve the transaction, followed by an agreement with CCMP by Tuesday. A purchase would still be subject to shareholder approval and regulatory review.

The group has had a chequered history of late. Founder Vinod Gupta was removed as Chairman and resigned as CEO in summer 2008 after an investigation found him guilty of 'excessive spending'. Still the owner of 21.4 million Infogroup shares - c.37% - he has since explored various options and is now said to favour a sale of the company. His approval is said to have been required by CCMP as a condition of purchase.

Earlier this month the group announced redundancies and declines in revenue and profit; and in January former CFO Stormy Dean began action against the company for unpaid severance and bonuses.

The company has a number of large subsidiaries including database and sales lead companies infoUSA, Salesgenie and Yesmail, in addition to ORC (Opinion Research Corporation). Social research specialist Macro International Inc. was sold last year to ICF International for $155 million in cash.

About half of Infogroup's c.3,000 staff are based in Omaha. The group's web site is at www.infogroup.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.

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