Share owners want more

For the second-straight day, investors showed confidence in a Newport Beach-based company facing a class-action lawsuit over its attempt to go private, with stocks remaining level Friday even after news of the lawsuit broke.

The TriZetto Group, a publicly traded medical technology company aiming to go private, is in the middle of being acquired for $1.4 billion.

Apax Partners, a private-equity firm, and TriZetto’s own customers — BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee and a combination of other BlueCross BlueShield health-insurance plans called The Regence Group — are making a bid to buy the company.

Pennsylvania lawyer Brian Felgoise announced Thursday he represents dissatisfied shareholders hoping to derail the buyout until they get what they regard as the highest possible offering for their public shares.

Apax Partners offered stockholders $22 per share in cash, a 29% increase over the stock’s average price over the previous month.

As news of the buyout spread last week, TriZetto stock jumped 3 points to more than $20 a share, one of its highest prices in a year.

The stock continued to rise Thursday and leveled Friday, dropping only 2 cents.

Efforts to reach Felgoise for comment Friday were unsuccessful. TriZetto officials declined to comment on the lawsuit.

The company is willing to privatize because it gives the company a chance to focus on long-term company goals, rather than short-term profits, officials said. TriZetto designs software that helps health insurance companies work more efficiently with doctors and patients.

The company’s direction won’t change under Apax Partners, officials said.

The deal is expected to take four to six months to finalize. There is no word on whether, or for how long, the lawsuit will affect the buyout.

JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at joseph.serna@latimes.com.