Cognos acquires data-software maker

Software maker Cognos on Thursday acquired privately held Adaytum for $161 million in cash to fill out its data analysis portfolio. Minneapolis-based Adaytum has about 1,500 clients of its enteprise performance planning software, which helps companies measure their effectiveness in meeting established goals. Cognos, headquartered in Burlington, Mass., and a seller of software to analyze business operations, said the addition will help its push into what it calls corporate performance management (CPM). The combination ?will accelerate our ability to execute on the promise of CPM--to help enterprise customers understand and advance their business performance across their entire company,? Ron Zambonini, Cognos CEO, said in a statement.

Congos also announced its third-quarter results Thursday, which beat analysts' expectations. Revenue for the quarter climbed 11 percent to $138 million; earnings rose to $19.9 million, from $13.3 million for the same period last year. Cognos shares on Nasdaq rose 47 cents to finish Thursday at $22.22.