Adds CEO comment in paragraph 8, analyst comment in paragraph 11

By Aatreyee Dasgupta

April 28 (Reuters) - Sabre Corp SABR.O said on Monday it will sell its hospitality software platform to asset manager TPG TPG.O for $1.1 billion and use the cash to pare its debt, lifting the travel technology provider's shares nearly 26% in early trading.

The stock is now up 13.5%. The company had a market capitalization of $845 million as of last close, according to data compiled by LSEG. In contrast, its total debt stood at about $4.5 billion, net of cash, as of the end of December, according to its annual filing.

Sabre has made several moves to pare its debt, including a refinancing in December and the repayment of debt maturities earlier this month, the company said.

Monday's deal comes a month after Reuters reported that Sabre was exploring a sale of its hospitality software SynXis to help pare its debt.

TPG will invest in the unit through its U.S. and European private equity platform, with the transaction expected to close by the end of the third quarter 2025.

Sabre's SynXis serves as an integrated system of record for reservation and guest information for hotels.

The company's customers include top airlines, travel agencies, hotels, tour operators, car rental brands and rail carriers.

"This divestiture positions Sabre to focus on our core airline IT and travel marketplace platforms," said CEO Kurt Ekert.

The deal also comes at a time of uncertainty for the travel industry due to fears of an economic recession stemming from U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping import tariffs.

Many airlines, including legacy carriers Delta DAL.N, Southwest LUV.N and American AAL.O, have withdrawn their full-year financial forecasts in view of the ambiguity.

"Amid uncertain near-term travel demand and enduring elevated financing costs, the sale should alleviate investor concerns about Sabre's ability to meet its debt obligations and continue financing its core distribution business, given its 2024 debt/adjusted EBITDA ratio of 10 times," analyst Dan Wasiolek said in a Morningstar note.

(Reporting by Aatreyee Dasgupta and Aishwarya Jain in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo and Alan Barona)

((Aatreyee.Dasgupta@thomsonreuters.com))