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SentinelOne, a cybersecurity firm valued at approximately $5 billion, has been exploring potential avenues, which could encompass a sale, according to a report by Reuters.
The company, headquartered in Mountain View, California, has become a target for acquisition after witnessing an 80% decline in its share value over the past two years. It initially benefited from heightened technology spending during the COVID-19 pandemic, driven by remote work. However, this trend subsided as companies curtailed their information technology budgets due to a slowing economy.
To navigate these circumstances, SentinelOne has engaged the services of investment bank Qatalyst Partners to facilitate discussions with potential buyers, including private equity firms, as revealed by the sources.
Initial expressions of interest did not align with SentinelOne’s valuation expectations. Consequently, there is a possibility that the talks could conclude without a finalized deal, according to one of the sources. The specific price point sought by SentinelOne was not disclosed by the sources.
In response to this news, SentinelOne’s shares surged by 19% to reach $17.19 during afternoon trading in New York on Monday.
Launched in Israel in 2013, SentinelOne employs artificial intelligence to detect unusual behaviour within enterprise networks, safeguarding laptops and mobile phones from security breaches. It competes directly with CrowdStrike Holdings, serving major corporations and even the U.S. government as its clientele.
Supported by entities like Daniel Loeb’s hedge fund Third Point, as well as venture capital firms Tiger Global and Sequoia Capital, SentinelOne made its debut on the U.S. stock market in 2021, securing a valuation of $8.9 billion.
However, the initial excitement among investors waned as the company grappled with profitability issues while maintaining competitive pricing to capture market share. In a notable disclosure in June, SentinelOne acknowledged overestimating its annual recurring revenue, necessitating a restatement due to changes in methodology and rectification of historical inaccuracies.
In its most recent quarterly earnings report, SentinelOne revised its annual revenue growth projections and also announced plans to reduce its workforce by approximately 5%.
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