McAfee Corp. MCFE, +20.04% shares jumped late in Friday’s regular session following a report that private-equity firm Advent International Corp. was close to a more than $ 10 billion deal to buy out the cybersecurity firm.
McAfee shares shot to an intraday high of $ 26.39 for a 24% gain less than an hour before closing up 20% at $ 25.46. The stock tacked on another 2% gain after hours. Shares opened Friday at $ 21.21, giving McAfee a market cap of $ 9.21 billion, and at Friday close the company was valued at $ 11.06 billion.
Late Friday, The Wall Street Journal reported that people familiar with the matter confirmed a deal was in the works, but that it could still fall apart. McAfee has only been public for a little more than a year following its October 2020 IPO where it priced shares at $ 20 apiece, closed down 7% on the first day of trading.
McAfee shares are up about 50% over the past 12 months compared with a 34% gain on both the S&P 500 index SPX, +0.37% and the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, +0.20%, and a 37% gain on the ETFMG Prime Cyber Security ETF HACK, -0.05%.