TPG, Silver Lake Near Deal for Avaya: WSJ
Private-equity firms TPG Capital and Silver Lake Partners are in a leading position to buy telecommunications equipment company Avaya for about $17 per share, the Wall Street Journal reported in its online edition on Monday.
The deal could break down or Avaya could fall into the hands of another suitor, such as Canada's Nortel Networks , the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Silver Lake declined comment. Neither TPG nor Avaya could immediately be reached.
Avaya's small size relative to rivals like Cisco Systems has long made the company a subject of takeover speculation. Such talk intensified last week, helping lift the stock to its best level since 2005, after Avaya postponed an investor conference.
The company, with about $5 billion in annual revenue, provides equipment for Web-based telephone calls. Its stock closed Friday at $16.08.
