NEW YORK, Dec 18 (Reuters) - Cannae Holdings ( CNNE )

plans to hold talks about participating in a deal to acquire

Rapid7 ( RPD ) and will stop working with the activist investor

that has been urging the cybersecurity company to put itself up

for sale, according to a regulatory filing.

Hedge fund Jana Partners and publicly traded holding company

Cannae have "de-grouped" and will no longer be coordinating

actions with respect to Rapid7 ( RPD ), the firm said in the filing made

on Wednesday.

This step will allow Cannae to engage in confidential

discussions with Rapid7 ( RPD ) and other potential buyers without

involving Jana.

Jana has an economic interest of more than 12% and owns 5.8%

of voting shares of Rapid7 ( RPD ). Since June, when the activist first

unveiled its investment, Jana has been urging the

Boston-headquartered company to improve its operations and

forecasting and to consider selling itself.

Cannae, which is led by billionaire Bill Foley, currently

has operating interests in Dun & Bradstreet Holdings and Alight.

Jana said in a filing in June that it was working with Cannae

and that the plan was for Cannae to potentially participate in

an acquisition of the company.

Six weeks ago, Reuters reported that Rapid7 ( RPD ) was exploring

options with its investment bankers after attracting acquisition

interest from buyout firms, according to people familiar with

the matter. Goldman Sachs ( GS ) and JPMorgan ( JPM ) are

advising Rapid7 ( RPD ).

Rapid7 ( RPD ) specializes in so-called vulnerability management,

providing software tools and services that help businesses

assess and monitor security risks. The company has been forced

to compete harder for business as corporate clients cut back on

security spending due to broader macroeconomic uncertainty.

Its share price has fallen 29% since January.

Jana has previously pushed for the sale of New Relic, which

was taken private by TPG and Francisco Partners last year. It

also pushed for the sale of Zendesk, which was taken private in

2022 by investment firms led by Hellman & Friedman and Permira.