Monday Yahoo officially declined the unexpected $44.6 billion ($31 a share) bid from Microsoft. The board unanimously agreed that the deal “substantially undervalues” the company.
Yahoo also said in a statement,
“The board of directors is continually evaluating all of its strategic options in the context of the rapidly evolving industry environment and we remain committed to pursuing initiatives that maximize value for all stockholders.”
Making it sound as though there were other offers out there and maybe Microsoft should up the ante. Although the made no move to offer more they appear to be sticking with their innitiative,
“Based on conversations with stakeholders of both companies, we are confident that moving forward promptly to consummate a transaction is in the best interests of all parties.”
It will be interesting to see what if Microsoft does actually offer more money. They will need to close a deal quickly in order to keep Google from making a deal with Yahoo. Supposedly they are in talks about some sort of ad partnership. There are also rumors about Time Warner Inc.’s AOL trying to get in on the action. Another struggling internet entity.
Many analysts are still predicting a deal to happen, but most of it is speculation. In the meantime CEO Jerry Lang is trying to reassure the employees of Yahoo:
“We have accomplished a great deal in a very short time,” wrote Yang, a co-founder and board member. He has made some big promises since becoming CEO eight months ago. “Yahoo is a faster-moving, better organized, more nimble company well on its way to transforming the experiences of its users, advertisers, publishers and developers.”
Is Yang just a cheerleader or is Yahoo about to make a come back?
