(By Balaseshan) Ancestry.com Inc. (NASDAQ: ACOM) said its stockholders have approved the merger agreement under which a company owned by Permira funds and co-investors, will acquire the online family history resource.
Based on the preliminary tabulation of the stockholder vote, about 99% of the total votes cast, which represents about 75% of the total shares outstanding of Ancestry.com as of the November 30 record date, were voted in favor of adopting the merger agreement.
"We are very pleased with the outcome of today's vote. On behalf of Ancestry.com, I want to thank our stockholders for their support throughout this process. We look forward to closing the merger by year-end," said Tim Sullivan, Chief Executive of Ancestry.com.
Qatalyst Partners LP is acting as financial advisor and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz is acting as legal counsel to Ancestry.com.
On October 22, a company owned by the Permira funds and co-investors has reached a definitive merger agreement to buy Ancestry.com for $32.00 per share cash or $1.6 billion.
No changes are expected in Ancestry.com's operating structure, as a result of the acquisition. Ancestry.com's focus will continue on investing in content, technology and its user experience, expanding product offerings in areas such as DNA.
Ancestry.com's Chief Executive Tim Sullivan and Howard Hochhauser, the company's Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer, will maintain a majority of their equity stakes in the company. Spectrum Equity will also continue to be an investor in the company.
The company's subscribers use its Web-based services and content collection to research their family histories, build their family trees, collaborate with other subscribers, upload their own records and publish and share their stories. Registered users have uploaded over 95 million pieces of content, such as photographs and scanned documents.
ACOM is trading down 0.06% at $32 on Thursday. The stock has been trading between $20.75 and $33.80 for the past 52 weeks.