iSoft in trading halt ahead of rumoured CSC buy-out

Share price frozen until Monday.

E-health supplier iSoft has suspended trading ahead of a rumoured $300 million buy-out by long-time collaborator CSC.

The ASX-listed company requested a trading halt last Thursday, in preparation for an announcement about its “strategic review process” on Monday 28 March.

On Monday, iSoft extended the trading halt by one week, stating that it was not yet ready to make a detailed announcement that would include information “relating to a potential change of control” (pdf).

Newspaper reports suggested that New York-listed CSC – iSoft’s largest customer – could acquire the Sydney-based firm for more than $300 million.

A spokesman for CSC Australia was “unable to comment” on the matter today.

In June 2007, CSC reportedly considered making a cash bid for a cash-strapped iSoft, which was listed on the London Stock Exchange at the time.

CSC later approved a $333 million merger between iSoft and Australian e-health company IBA Health in a deal that was finalised on 30 October 2007. IBA Health was renamed iSoft in May 2009 (pdf).

But share prices continued to fall from about $0.66 in May 2009 to $0.052 currently.

iSoft reported a net loss of $84 million for the half year ending December 2010, and a loss of $383 million for the 2009-10 financial year.

CSC and iSoft have collaborated on supplying iSoft’s Lorenzo healthcare records system to the British Government since 2004. The original agreement covered software releases, deployment and maintenance until January 2016.