Alphabet’s acquisition of HubSpot will not happen

Sources told Bloomberg that Alphabet’s potential deal to acquire HubSpot has been shelved. “The parties have not reached the due diligence stage in their deal talks,” the report said.

The first rumors of talks seemed to strengthen in late May, when CNBC’s David Faber reported that the companies were still in talks and an all-stock deal was being considered.

Why do we care. The story has been circulating for more than three months. Rumors that Alphabet is in talks to acquire HubSpot (April); Alphabet is definitely in talks to acquire HubSpot (May); no, it’s not happening (July). In the meantime, HubSpot users either wondered what this would mean for the central part of their marketing stack or simply ignored it all.

Whatever the truth of any of the rumors, HubSpot stock has yo-yoed with every twist of history. Maybe things will calm down now?

Below is MarTech coverage from May 9, 2024, when HubSpot released its financial results and new reports of the Alphabet-HubSpot deal emerged:

HubSpot’s revenue and earnings beat expectations for the ninth consecutive day following further news of its sale to Google parent Alphabet.

The Cambridge, Mass.-based digital marketing services provider reported earnings of $1.68 per share and revenue of $617.4 million for the first quarter of 2024. Profits were up 40% from the same period last year, and revenue was up 23%. Analysts had expected HubSpot to report earnings of $1.50 on sales of $598 million.

The company’s stock, which fell slightly after its earnings report Wednesday, rebounded Thursday morning on reports of acquisition talks between HubSpot and Alphabet. Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources, that talks were “progressing,” though it did not provide any details. News of talks between the two companies first emerged in April.

HubSpot’s stock has risen about 32% over the past 12 months, bringing its market value to $30 billion.

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