Volkswagen Backs Deal for Truck Maker October 21, 2006
Volkswagen threw its weight behind a hostile bid by the German truck maker MAN to acquire a Swedish rival, Scania.
FRANKFURT, Oct. 15 ? Volkswagen threw its weight behind a hostile bid by the German truck maker MAN to acquire a Swedish rival, Scania, for 10.3 billion euros ($12.9 billion) in cash and stock.
Volkswagen, which is the largest shareholder of both companies, said on Sunday that if MAN won enough support from other shareholders for the deal it would sell its 34 percent voting stake in Scania to MAN.
“MAN welcomes Volkswagen’s continued support for its concept to combine MAN and Scania and its willingness to tender its shares into a successful offer,” MAN said in a statement.
Volkswagen’s conditional endorsement of MAN’s hostile bid could be seen as a veiled threat to the Scania managers, who have repeatedly rejected a merger. Representatives of Scania could not immediately be reached for comment.
Some analysts expect that the company may decide on Monday to propose issuing a hefty special dividend, which would act as a de facto poison pill defense, meaning MAN would have to raise its bid a second time.
- Posted in : Uncategorized, VW
- Author : arnold
Comments»
no comments yet - be the first?