Cloud-based software company Salesforce $CRM is in advanced discussions to acquire the data-management software maker Informatica, according to a new report. The news sent both Salesforce stock and Informatica shares down Monday.
Salesforce stock closed down 7.3%. Informatica stock lost 6.5%.
There is a possibility of a deal at a price below Informatica’s Friday closing of $38.48 per share, The Wall Street Journal reports. Salesforce has acquired more than 70 companies since 2006. If Salesforce acquires Informatica, which has a market capitalization of about $11 billion, it would be its biggest acquisition since its $28 billion purchase of Slack $WORK Technologies in 2021, The Journal reports.
As a cloud-based software company, Salesforce helps sales staff manage customer relationships, while Informatica allows companies to manage their data across cloud and on-premises systems for better analysis.
Like a lot of big tech companies, Salesforce also wants to bet on artificial intelligence. Earlier this year, Salesforce delivered two major releases: Einstein Copilot, a generative AI assistant for CRM released in February, and Einstein 1 Studio, a set of tools that allow developers to customize Einstein Copilot released in March.
Likewise, Informatica launched new tools last year that allow companies to manage their data using artificial intelligence.