Progress Software Expands Portfolio through Acquisition of ShareFile

Progress Software acquires Cloud Software Group unit ShareFile for approximately $875 million to expand its enterprise product offerings. This transaction is expected to be completed within Progress's current fiscal year, which ends on November 30. ShareFile, founded in 2005 by Jesse Lipson, employs advanced encryption methods for file transfer and storage. The company is expected to contribute approximately $240 million annually to Progress's revenue and boasts an impressive customer base of more than 86,000 users. The Burlington, Massachusetts-based company Progress has a market value of around $2.5 billion. Its products assist customers in automating business processes, managing data, and troubleshooting IT infrastructure issues. As part of the acquisition, Progress will also suspend its quarterly dividend to free up capital for debt repayment, future investments, and stock buybacks. Progress also reaffirmed its confidence in its own financial forecasts for the third fiscal quarter on Monday, expecting revenue and adjusted earnings per share to be at the higher end or above the estimates from June 25.