Slack clarifies IBM speculation

Big Blue is a big deal for Slack

Following reports that Slack may have bagged one of its biggest customers yet, the company moved to douse investor enthusiasm.

Shares spiked more than 15 percent Monday on reports that IBM employees, around 350,600 of them, will all be moving to the workplace messaging system.

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
WORK n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
IBM INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORP. 190.91 +0.09 +0.05%
MSFT MICROSOFT CORP. 420.72 -0.71 -0.17%

In an SEC filing after the closing bell, which came after the stock was halted, the company said:

"IBM has been Slack's largest customer for several years and has expanded its usage of Slack over that time. Slack is not updating its financial guidance for the fourth quarter of the fiscal year ended January 31, 2020 or for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2020."

Shares declined in the extended session following the update.

FOX Business' inquiries to IBM and Slack were not immediately returned. Business Insider was first to report the developments.

The team at D.A. Davidson says the deal, if accurate, would be worth an estimated $35 million and is significant because it shows the company "can scale."

Slack, which went public last July, competes directly with Microsoft's Teams, a similar product. The company's most recent customer update appears to be the addition of SiriusXM, the world’s largest audio entertainment company, according to Slack's blog.

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
SIRI SIRIUS XM HOLDINGS INC. 3.88 -0.02 -0.51%

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Last month IBM's longtime CEO Ginny Rometty announced her retirement.

IBM NAMES NEW CEO, GINNY ROMETTY TO RETIRE

IBM’s board of directors elected Arvind Krishna as the company’s new chief executive officer, he will take over the CEO role effective April 6, the company announced.

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