Dell explores sale of cybersecurity company SecureWorks to trim debt pile

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Computer maker Dell Technologies Inc is exploring a sale of SecureWorks Corp, a U.S. provider of cybersecurity services with a market value of close to $2 billion, people familiar with the matter.
A sale of SecureWorks, in which Dell holds an 85 percent stake, would allow the latter to trim its $50 billion debt pile, after it decided to become a publicly traded company last year through a complex deal involving its software subsidiary VMware Inc.

SecureWorks is working with investment bank Morgan Stanley on a sale process for the entire company that is in its early stages, the sources said, asking not to be identified because the matter is confidential.

Dell and SecureWorks declined to comment, while Morgan Stanley did not respond to a request for comment.

SecureWorks, based in Atlanta, offers information security solutions aimed at protecting corporate networks from cyberattacks to 4,300 clients in more than 50 countries, according to its website.
Dell acquired SecureWorks for $612 million in 2011 and then floated the company on the stock market in 2016. SecureWorks shares are up 64 percent since then.


 In December, Dell became a publicly traded company following a $23.9 billion deal to buy back shares tied to its interest in VMware, which it acquired when it bought buy data storage company EMC for $67 billion in 2016. EMC owned a majority stake in VMware.