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Oracle announced its agreement to acquire Sun Microsystems on April 20, 2009, offering $9.50 in cash for each Sun share. The deal’s approximate gross value was $7.4 billion, or $5.6 billion after accounting for Sun’s cash and debt. Oracle said it was pairing its enterprise software with Sun’s computing systems and would continue investing in Java.

How much did Oracle pay for Sun?

Oracle and Sun announced a definitive merger agreement at $9.50 cash per Sun common share. Oracle described the transaction as worth approximately $7.4 billion gross and $5.6 billion net of Sun’s cash and debt. Those figures describe different calculations, not competing purchase prices. Oracle’s April 20, 2009 announcement and its SEC-filed investor-call transcript state the offer and values.

Why did Oracle want Sun?

Oracle presented the acquisition as a way to combine its enterprise software with Sun’s mission-critical computing systems. The strategic assets highlighted by Oracle included Sun’s hardware and systems, along with Java; Oracle said the deal would support continued investment in Java and strengthen its middleware and Fusion applications. CEO Larry Ellison described the combination as bringing together “best-in-class enterprise software and mission-critical computing systems.” Oracle’s announcement sets out the company’s stated rationale.

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What Oracle projected financially

Oracle said the acquired business was expected to contribute at least $1.5 billion to first-year non-GAAP operating profit and more than $2 billion in the second year. These were Oracle’s projections when it announced the agreement, not reported results. President Safra Catz also forecast at least 15 cents of non-GAAP earnings accretion in the first full year after closing. The announcement gives the projections and their basis.

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When was the Sun acquisition approved and completed?

Date Milestone
April 20, 2009 Oracle and Sun announced the definitive merger agreement at $9.50 cash per share.
July 16, 2009 Sun shareholders approved the merger.
August 20, 2009 The U.S. Department of Justice approved the transaction and ended the Hart-Scott-Rodino waiting period. At that point, other closing conditions, including European Commission clearance, remained.
January 26, 2010 Oracle completed the acquisition; Sun became a wholly owned Oracle subsidiary, and eligible Sun shares converted into $9.50 cash per share.

The shareholder approval and closing details appear in Oracle’s closing announcement. The Justice Department’s filing describes the U.S. antitrust step and the conditions still outstanding at that time: DOJ announcement, August 20, 2009.

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What happened to Sun Microsystems after the deal?

Sun ceased to be an independent company when the acquisition closed and became a wholly owned subsidiary of Oracle. Under the merger terms, eligible Sun shareholders received cash rather than Oracle shares: $9.50 for each Sun common share. The agreement therefore transferred ownership of Sun to Oracle while setting a cash payout for its shareholders.

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