The Convergys Corporation will acquire Dallas-based Intervoice, Inc. for $335 million in cash or $8.25 per share. The acquisition will expand Cincinnati-based Convergys' automated and live agent offerings.
The boards of directors of both companies have approved the acquisition, which represents a premium of 24 percent of Intervoice's closing stock price on July 15.
Convergys intends to initially fund the transaction through existing and new credit facilities and cash on hand. The transaction is expected to close during the third quarter of 2008.
By integrating Intervoice's complementary speech automation, Web self-care and mobile applications, Convergys officials say they will be able to expand their automated and live agent services.
Intervoice's products and services portfolio provides Convergys with an expanded offering, reduced time to market and enhanced differentiation in the large and growing automated services market.
"This acquisition is part of our plan to be the market leader in relationship management solutions," said Dave Dougherty, Convergys' president and CEO.
"Clients are demanding high-quality, integrated, relationship management solutions, combining both automated and live agent services, to drive more value from their relationships with their customers and employees," he said. "We believe acquiring Intervoice allows us to compete more effectively as a single-source provider and enables us to grow our revenues and our earnings. We're very excited about this transaction and the value we expect it to create for our clients and shareholders, as well as the opportunities we expect it to create for Convergys and Intervoice employees."
Intervoice's global channel and technology partnerships and sales presence will provide Convergys with a number of cross-selling opportunities to further penetrate current markets and access new markets and geographies. Company officials say these cross-selling opportunities as well as the new bundled product offerings are expected to accelerate Convergys' revenue growth in 2009 and beyond.
"While Intervoice has performed well independently for 25 years, this transaction should create significant value for our shareholders, new opportunities for our employees and enhanced ways to drive our customers' success," said Robert Ritchey, CEO of Intervoice. "Convergys is an industry leader that shares our passion for innovative technology and excellence in customer service. We expect our complementary product and services suites to optimize relationship management across all industry segments. We look forward to joining the Convergys team."