Salesforce acquires Tableau Software in $15.7 billion deal

Salesforce has announced its intention to purchase Tableau Software in a deal worth $15.7 billion.

On Monday, the US cloud software giant said the acquisition will be made through an all-stock transaction, in which Tableau Class A and Class B common stock will be exchanged for 1.103 shares of Salesforce common stock.

The deal gives Tableau an enterprise value of $15.7 billion.

"We are bringing together the world's #1 CRM with the #1 analytics platform," said Marc Benioff, Chairman, and co-CEO of Salesforce. "Tableau helps people see and understand data, and Salesforce helps people engage and understand customers. It's truly the best of both worlds for our customers -- bringing together two critical platforms that every customer needs to understand their world."

Salesforce has been a dominant player in the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) enterprise realm for years. The decision to acquire Tableau, an analytics platform and data visualization specialist with over 86,000 clients worldwide, highlights the firm's shift into the analytics field and diversification beyond its main CRM product line.

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"With Tableau, Salesforce will play an even greater role in driving digital transformation, enabling companies around the world to tap into data across their entire business and surface deeper insights to make smarter decisions, drive intelligent, connected customer experiences and accelerate innovation," the company says.

While Tableau will become part of Salesforce, the company will still operate independently under the Tableau brand following the closure of the deal. Adam Selipsky, President and CEO of Tableau, will continue to lead the firm in Seattle, Washington.

"Joining forces with Salesforce will enhance our ability to help people everywhere see and understand data," said Selipsky. "I'm delighted that our companies share very similar cultures and a relentless focus on customer success. I look forward to working together in support of our customers and communities."

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Analytics, as well as intelligent business networks, has become big business. It makes sense for Salesforce -- as many other enterprise solution providers -- to want to tap into this lucrative market, as well as future-proof itself against other companies interested in the same fields.

Google, for example, picked up enterprise intelligence and analytics firm Looker for $2.6 billion last week in a bid to strengthen the tech giant's smart analytics platform and Google Cloud's digital transformation business.

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Salesforce says the acquisition will bolster the enterprise firm's FY20 revenue by $350 to $400 million, increasing GAAP revenue to between $16.45 billion to $16.65 billion. However, FY20 non-GAAP diluted earnings per share (EPS) is expected to decrease to $0.39. Non-GAAP EPS is now expected to reach between $2.51 to $2.53.

The transaction has been approved by both the Salesforce and Tableau board of directors. It is expected that the acquisition will close during Salesforces' third-quarter, ending October 31, 2019 subject to regulatory approval. 

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