Investors bid $2.3 bn for software firm Compuware

An investor group Monday offered $2.3 billion in a takeover bid for business software firm Compuware, saying it has quality assets but has underperformed.

Elliott Management Corp, which holds an eight percent stake in Compuware, said it was offering $11 per share in cash for the remaining stock. It said this amounted to a 25 percent premium to the price ahead of the company's recent regulatory filing.

"We believe our proposal represents a compelling opportunity that your stockholders will find extremely attractive," said a letter to shareholders from Elliott's portfolio manager, Jesse Cohn.

"Compuware is a long-established company that we have followed closely for several years. We believe in the quality of Compuware's assets -- however, its execution, profitability and growth have meaningfully underperformed."

The news comes days after Compuware announced plans for a public offering of its Covisint unit, a platform which provides secure cloud computing for major companies, including in the auto sector.

Compuware rallied some 12.7 percent to $10.74 on the news.

Earlier this month, another investor group, Sandell Asset Management Corp., which has a 2.5 percent stake in Compuware, called on the company "to act with greater urgency to maximize shareholder value."

Compuware, which was formed in 1973, describes itself as a supplier of software products and services designed to increase productivity, including for mainframe computers.