Private equity firm Vista Equity Partners Management LLC is exploring a sale of Aptean Inc, hoping a deal will value the U.S. business software company at more than $1 billion, including debt, according to people familiar with the matter.

A sale of Aptean would underscore the popularity of companies that help automate administrative operations for companies, just four years after Vista Equity acquired Aptean’s predecessor, CDC Software Inc, out of bankruptcy.

Vista Equity subsequently merged CDC Software with Consona Corp to form Aptean. The buyout firm is working with investment bank Morgan Stanley (MS.N) on a sale process for Aptean, the people said this week.

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