Today, February 5, Dell announced that it has signed a merger agreement under which Michael Dell, Dell’s Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and Silver Lake, will acquire Dell and take the company private. This agreement also includes a $2 billion loan from Microsoft.
The entire transaction is valued around $24.4 billion. Dell stockholders will receive $13.65 in cash for each share of Dell common stock they hold. The price is around 25 percent over Dell’s closing share price of $10.88 on Jan. 11, 2013. The buyers will acquire for cash all of the outstanding shares of Dell not held by Mr. Dell and certain other members of management.
Microsoft has shared the following statement after the press release: "Microsoft has provided a $2 billion loan to the group that has proposed to take Dell private. Microsoft is committed to the long term success of the entire PC ecosystem and invests heavily in a variety of ways to build that ecosystem for the future."
This is good news for those who believe in the Dell brand. This will allow the company to refocus and realign to meet the needs of their customer. Dell needs this change to become a bigger player in a market where they once thrived.
Comments