Benzinga | Apr 12, 2021 09:30AM EDT

Microsoft Confirms Nuance Communications Acquisition For $19.7B

* Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has become the final bidder for Nuance Communications Inc (NASDAQ:NUAN), the company that helped develop Apple Inc's (NASDAQ:AAPL) Siri speech technology for $56 per share.

* The deal price implies a 23% premium to NUAN's Friday closing price of $45.58, valuing the all-cash transaction at $19.7 billion, inclusive of Nuance's net debt.

* The acquisition will accelerate Microsoft's cloud and Artificial Intelligence (AI) software strategy as Nuance is a leader representing decades of accumulated healthcare and enterprise AI experience.

* Mark Benjamin will remain CEO of Nuance and report to Microsoft vice president of Cloud & AI, Scott Guthrie.

* Bloomberg had noted the possibility of a Microsoft-Nuance deal over the weekend.

* The acquisition will double Microsoft's total addressable market (TAM) in the healthcare provider space, bringing the company's TAM in healthcare to nearly $500 billion.

* Nuance acquisition is Microsoft's largest since the $26 billion purchase of LinkedIn.

* "Nuance provides the AI layer at the healthcare point of delivery and is a pioneer in the real-world application of enterprise AI," said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.

* Price Action: NUAN shares are up 17.9% at $53.73, while MSFT shares are trading lower by 0.27% at $255.16 in the premarket session on the last check Monday.