Thoma Bravo Might Sell Apryse for Over $3 Billion

Okay, so you know how those big shot companies buy and sell smaller companies? Well, get this, the buyout biggie Thoma Bravo is thinking about selling Apryse. Apparently, some folks are interested in buying this company that makes software for messing with documents, like making and editing PDFs and stuff. We're talking a possible deal worth over $3 billion! Crazy, right?

Sources who know what's up, but want to keep it on the down low, said Thoma Bravo is working with some investment bankers at Lazard to figure all this out. Other private equity firms are already sniffing around, those sources told us. Maybe Thoma Bravo will even keep a little piece of the company if a deal happens. But hey, nothing is set in stone, so who knows if it'll actually go through.

So, what does Apryse actually do? Picture this: they make the tech that lets app developers put document stuff into their mobile and computer apps. Think about being able to create, change, and flip digital documents, or adding those features into your own apps. They're based in Denver, Colorado. Some pretty big names use their stuff, like Novartis, Wells Fargo, and DocuSign, if you check out their website.

These sources also mentioned that Apryse is bringing in over $100 million every year before all the taxes and everything. Plus, they're growing super fast, like over 20% each year! So, if someone does buy them, the deal is expected to value the company at 30 times their earnings or even more. That's a lot of cash!

Before it was called Apryse, it was named PDFTron. It started way back in 1998 doing document processing tech. Then, in 2021, Thoma Bravo swooped in and bought it. A guy named Hudson Smith, who's one of the main guys at Thoma's Discover platform, led that investment. They changed the name to Apryse just two years later. Some other investors, Silversmith Capital Partners, and the company's original management team still own a small chunk of the business.

Since Thoma Bravo took over, Apryse has actually bought nine other companies to make their software even better and reach more places around the world. Just this week, they announced they bought a company from the Netherlands that also does digital documents. And last year, they picked up Lead Technologies, which makes software using AI. Pretty busy!