After six years on the stock market, Qlik Inc. is preparing to become a private company again. The transition was set into motion this week after the data visualization vendor accepted a $3 billion buyout offer from Thoma Bravo LLC, a prolific private equity fund with a particular interest in the tech sector.

The firm previously acquired SolarWinds Inc., a maker of infrastructure monitoring tools, in a $4.5 billion deal that closed a few months ago. And before that, Thoma Bravo took mainframe software specialist Compuware Inc. private for $2.5 billion. Both vendors sold out due to pressure from Elliott Management Corp., which is likely also the driving behind Qlik’s privatization. Reuters reports that the activist hedge fund bought an 8.8 percent share in the company earlier this year and started publicly calling for a buyout around March.

Thoma Bravo’s $3 billion bid values Qlik at $30.50 per share, a 40 percent premium over the stock’s last closing price that should result in a hefty return for Elliott Management. The fund can now boast of having helped privatize nearly a dozen tech firms in recent years, the perhaps most notable of which is Blue Coat Systems Inc., whose leadership yesterday revealed plans to return to the stock market. The move comes less than a year after the network security provider was bought out by Bain Capital LLC for $2.4 billion.

 Thoma Bravo can also be expected to aggressively pursue a return on its $3 billion investment in Qlik.  Privatizing the company will enable its leadership team to focus on long-term growth without short-term performance pressures from Wall Street, which should help along the effort considerably. The buyout is set to complete in the third quarter pending investor and regulatory approval.  

Image via Geralt