Dive Brief:
- Athenahealth will acquire Praxify Technologies, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based EHR company.
- The deal is worth $63 million, Reuters reported.
- Company spokesperson Holly Spring was quoted in the Boston Business Journal saying the acquisition was something athena "has been evaluating for some time."
Dive Insight:
The purchase seems to be one bit of a strategy athena has outlined to move toward a more networked approach.
The Watertown, Mass.-based company in its prepared statement stated it hopes the acquisition will accelerate research and development initiatives. The underlying technology Praxify is built on will be integrated into athenahealth's cloud platform, and "will create new opportunities for both internal and third-party developers to rapidly build and launch applications."
In February, athenahealth president and CEO Jonathan Bush told Healthcare Dive he saw the company moving toward networking and piecing together practices via technology, adding that approach would require a new architecture and style of business. Acquiring Praxify — who's EHR software focuses on care management as well as acute and ambulatory workflows — seems in line with that approach.
The acquisition news comes after the Elliott Management disclosed a 9.2% economic interest in athena in May. Since the disclosure, athena's stock has been steadily rising after an initial surge following the disclosure on May 18. At the close of business Thursday, athena's common stock was at $141.02 per share, up from $139.08 at the close of business the previous day.