Mercury Interactive Agrees to Buy Kintana for $225 Million

Mercury Interactive Corp. became the latest business software maker to join in Silicon Valley’s deal-making blitz, announcing Tuesday that it would buy Kintana Inc. for $225 million in cash and stock.

The Sunnyvale, Calif.-based firms both specialize in helping businesses make sense of all the software, computers and Internet gear they bought during the 1990s.

Mercury’s revenue last year grew 11% to $400 million, for a $65.2-million profit. The firm got off to an even faster start this year, with its first-quarter revenue increasing 22% from last year and its profit rising 20%.

The demand for Mercury’s software has elevated the company’s stock too. The shares Tuesday rose $1.62 to $42.53 on Nasdaq.

Kintana says it generated $44.5 million in revenue last year. The 210-employee, privately held firm does not disclose its profit.

Mercury believes that Kintana’s tools will supplement its software designed for managing information technology departments. Kintana makes software that helps companies prioritize the importance of technology projects and create a pecking order for getting the jobs done.