ThirdForce in talks to buy computer business as share price doubles

COMPUTER training company ThirdForce, whose share price has almost doubled over the past week, has said it is in talks to buy a related business. The company responded to unusual patterns of trading in its stock by telling the stock exchange yesterday that it was examining the possibility of acquiring an unnamed private company in a “complementary business”.

ThirdForce, which is quoted on the Developing Companies Market in Dublin as well as London’s Alternative Investment Market, has seen its share price surge by 87% from 23.5c last week to yesterday’s level of 44c. Its market capitalisation now stands at over €50 million.

The company changed its name from Rapid Technology in March last year following a move into computer-based training and the €15.5 million acquisition of electronic learning company Electric Paper. Rapid Technology had previously focused on computer hardware before the board’s decision to change the company’s strategy.

The company said the potential acquisition was not big enough to require shareholder approval in advance. But any takeover would be a positive signal to the market that the company planned to embark on a programme of acquisitions. Market analysts said recent buying of ThirdForce shares reflected an anticipation of a further boost to the company’s share price.

The company said it would provide full information to shareholders if the deal under discussion went ahead.

ThirdForce is chaired by Pat McDonagh, who founded educational software provider Riverdeep and was also behind Smartforce, another electronic learning company. ThirdForce has also targeted the fast-growing Asian markets with the International Computer Driving Licence, a similar certification programme, and recently signed a deal to provide its courseware to every second-level school in Hong Kong.

The company has been successful in gaining access to the computer learning markets in China and a number of Middle Eastern countries and has also won a lucrative contract to provide its services to 57 prisons in Britain. ThirdForce’s annual general meeting will take place on January 28.