BMC Software, US provider of IT automation software and services for streamlining business management, is going private through a sale to a group of private-equity firms led by Bain Capital and Golden Gate Capital.

The company announced Monday that the group of investors will buy all of its outstanding common stock for US$46.25 per share, making for a total acquisition price of about $6.9bn.

Bob Beauchamp, Houston-based BMC's chairman and CEO, said the agreement would provide shareholders with “immediate and substantial cash value” and a premium to the company's unaffected share price.

“BMC believes the opportunity to become a private company will provide additional flexibility and position us to invest more strategically to drive powerful innovation and deliver cutting edge customer solutions,” he added. “We look forward to working closely with all parties to complete this transaction and enter into our next chapter of growth and industry leadership.”

Credit Suisse RBC Capital Markets and Barclays will provide debt financing for the transaction, expected to close later this year.

Elliott Management Corp., a major BMC shareholder, has been pressuring the company to look for ways to increase its stock price, according to a Wall Street Journal report. In a statement, Elliott Management portfolio manager Jesse Cohn applauded the decision to sell the company.

“This deal represents a tremendous outcome for BMC's employees, customers and stockholders,” Cohn said.

Boston-based Bain Capital, one of the main buyers in the deal, was co-founded by Mitt Romney, the former governor of the State of Massachusetts who lost the 2012 presidential election to Barack Obama.