Informix nabs Ardent Software

Database software maker Informix said today it agreed to acquire data management software company Ardent Software in a stock deal worth about $880 million.

Under terms of the agreement, 3.5 shares of Informix common stock will be exchanged for each outstanding share of Westboro, Mass.-based Ardent and Informix will assume all outstanding Ardent options.

The transaction is expected to be accounted for as a pooling of interests and to be accretive to Menlo Park, Calif.-based Informix's earnings per share in 2000, excluding non-recurring transaction-related costs, the companies said.

The deal is based on Informix's closing price yesterday of $11 per share.

Informix develops database software aimed at Internet firms, and Ardent provides data integration infrastructure software for data warehouse, business intelligence and e-business applications.

The companies said that their merger creates a $1 billion company in open software infrastructure for the Internet economy.

"This transaction ... represents a significant step in Informix's transformation to a provider of open, database-independent solutions," Jean-Yves Dexmier, chief executive of Informix, said in a statement.