Canada's Absolute Software to be bought by Crosspoint Capital for $657 million

(Reuters) -Canada's Absolute Software said on Thursday it had agreed to be taken private by Crosspoint Capital Partners for $657 million, extending a recent trend of private equity firms snapping up cybersecurity providers.

Shareholders of Absolute Software will receive $11.5 per share in cash, representing a premium of 34% to the U.S.-listed stock's last close, the company said.

The U.S.-listed shares rose to $11.29 in trading before the bell.

Shareholders are set to vote on the acquisition, valued at $870 million including debt, at a special meeting expected to be held in late June.

Crosspoint Capital, which has invested in McAfee and Forescout, focuses on cybersecurity, privacy and infrastructure software sectors.

Peer Thoma Bravo has agreed to acquire Magnet Forensics, ForgeRock over the past few months, taking advantage of a drop in valuations.

(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)