WebMD will pay $75M to acquire employee experience company Limeade – GeekWire

Limeade, the employee experience software company based in Bellevue, Wash., agreed to be acquired by WebMD Health Services, part of digital health giant WebMD Health Corp.

The transaction values Limeade at $112 million AUD, or about $75 million.

Limeade, founded in 2006, sells software that aims to help companies improve employee well-being and satisfaction. The company made its initial public offering on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) in December 2019.

Limeade reported a net loss of $3 million in its most recent quarter, down from a net loss of $6.4 million in the year-ago period. Revenue grew 13% to $14.3 million.

The company cut 15% of its workforce in January; it has around 300 employees, according to LinkedIn. Its stock is down nearly 70% this year.

The purchase price by WebMD represents a 325% premium to the closing price of Limeade securities on ASX on June 8. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter.

WebMD Health Services, based in Portland, Ore., designs well-being programs for employers and health plans. It’s part of WebMD, known for its consumer-facing health information sites including WebMD.com, Medscape.com, and RxList.com. WebMD is a subsidiary of digital media giant Internet Brands, which acquired the company in 2017 for nearly $3 billion.

Limeade CEO Henry Albrecht, a Seattle native with a background in literature and economics, was inspired to start Limeade based in part on his experience working at Intuit. He was inspired by the leadership of Intuit founder Scott Cook, “because of how intentional he was about building a great company,” Albrecht said in a 2015 interview with entrepreneur Sramana Mitra. Limeade resulted from Albrecht’s quest to “build a company around this idea that you can measurably improve well-being in the world,” he explained at the time.

“Limeade and WebMD Health Services creates the only truly complementary combination of culture and well-being in the market, allowing us to maximize health and well-being for all people and deliver better service, support, and capabilities for our clients,” he said in a statement.

Limeade acquired workplace survey tool TINYPulse in 2021. It announced an integration with Microsoft Viva around the same time.

The company’s former CFO, Todd Spartz, resigned in January.