Elon Musk U-Turns Again, Offers to Buy Twitter
The Musk-Twitter Saga
The story had started back in early-April, when a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) had revealed that Mr Musk had taken an approximately 9% stake in Twitter [1]. What followed was – in typical Musk fashion – a series of developments, a litany of comments and media buzz around Twitter and whether he intends to buy the company.
He then moved forward with a bid to acquire the social networking platform and the two sides finally came to an agreement on April 25. Under the deal, an entity wholly owned by Elon Musk would acquire Twitter for $54.20/share and take it private. [2]
Things quickly went south though, as a public dispute erupted over Twitter's claims for the number of spam/fake accounts on the platform, with Tesla's CEO threatening to pull out. He eventually announced the termination of the merger agreement in early-July, accusing the firm of multiple breaches of its provisions. [3]
Twitter quickly responded with a lawsuit to enforce the deal, in the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware [4], with the trial expected to begin in mid-October.
Elon Musk to Complete the Deal
This Tuesday marked another episode to the acquisition saga, as Mr Musk reversed course again, ahead of the actual trial. Based on a regulatory filing, he now intends to proceed with the completion of the acquisition agreement at the price original price of the April deal. [5]
It is uncertain what caused this reversal, but it seems like he would have a hard time wining the lawsuit and he would likely prefer to avoid a court trial and the depositions ahead of it.
Twitter confirmed that he received the relevant letter from the Musk parties and stated its intention to close the transaction at the original agreed upon price. [6]
It needs to be noted that months of heated and public dispute between the two parties has probably created some distrust and potentially animosity, which could still make the actual completion a bit tricky. It also remains to be seen how fast this can happen, given that shareholders have already approved the deal.
Market Reaction
Trading on the shares of Twitter was halted two times yesterday [7], on reports of Mr Musk's offer to complete the merger agreement. TWTR.us closed Tuesday with gains in excess of 20%, slightly below the $54.20 price of the buyout deal.
Meanwhile, shares of Tesla traded higher and paused the three-day decline, in an overall good day for the US stock market. The acquisition saga and Mr Musk erratic behavior has not reflected well on Tesla Motors Inc, also having probably caused the recent sell of company shares.
The prolific CEO also dropped some hints around his "everything app" dubbed X, saying that the Twitter buyout "probably accelerates X by 3 to 5 years" [8].
Nikos Tzabouras
Senior Market Specialist
Nikos Tzabouras is a graduate of the Department of International & European Economic Studies at the Athens University of Economics and Business. He has a long time presence at FXCM, as he joined the company in 2011. He has served from multiple positions, but specializes in financial market analysis and commentary.
With his educational background in international relations, he emphasizes not only on Technical Analysis but also in Fundamental Analysis and Geopolitics – which have been having increasing impact on financial markets. He has longtime experience in market analysis and as a host of educational trading courses via online and in-person sessions and conferences.
References
| Retrieved 05 Oct 2022 https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1494730/000110465922041911/tm2211482d1_sc13g.htm | |
| Retrieved 05 Oct 2022 https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/elon-musk-to-acquire-twitter-301532245.html | |
| Retrieved 05 Oct 2022 https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1418091/000110465922078413/tm2220599d1_ex99-p.htm | |
| Retrieved 05 Oct 2022 https://www.wlrk.com/docs/76660099_Final-Verified-Complaint.pdf | |
| Retrieved 05 Oct 2022 https://d18rn0p25nwr6d.cloudfront.net/CIK-0001418091/3311f2bf-b6e5-4a2b-b02c-65d71376883f.pdf | |
| Retrieved 05 Oct 2022 https://twitter.com/TwitterIR/status/1577380758192197632 | |
| Retrieved 05 Oct 2022 https://www.nasdaqtrader.com/trader.aspx | |
| Retrieved 20 Mar 2023 https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1577428673971777536 |
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