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Oracle CEO not sure if he`ll raise PeopleSoft bid
Milan, July 07: Larry Ellison, the chief executive of Oracle, does not know if he will raise the US software giant`s $6.2bn offer for rival PeopleSoft, he was quoted as saying on Sunday. Oracle has already upped its offer to $19.50 per PeopleSoft share from an original $16, and some analysts say Mr Ellison could add another price hike to the acrimonious takeover battle.
Milan, July 07: Larry Ellison, the chief executive of Oracle, does not know if he will raise the US software giant’s $6.2bn offer for rival PeopleSoft, he was quoted as saying on Sunday. Oracle has already upped its offer to $19.50 per PeopleSoft share from an original $16, and some analysts say Mr Ellison could add another price hike to the acrimonious takeover battle.
In an interview with Italy’s Corriere della Sera newspaper, Mr Ellison was asked if Oracle, the world’s second largest software group, would do just that. “I don’t know,” he was quoted as saying. “Obviously we would like to pay as little as possible. The problem is that PeopleSoft’s CEO has said he won’t sell at any price.” PeopleSoft has vociferously rejected Oracle’s bid and added “poison pills” to the potion — agreeing a $1.77 bn merger with smaller rival JD Edwards & Co and creating new contracts that would require any PeopleSoft buyer to refund clients up to five times the value of their licence agreement.
Analysts have said the PeopleSoft-JD Edwards merger, which could take Oracle’s number-two global software spot, may force Oracle to abandon the chase as a deal to buy the new group would face higher regulatory hurdles and put profits under pressure.
Mr Ellison had the harshest words for PeopleSoft’s poison pills, which Oracle is challenging in a court case. “How can a manager, who has the duty of running a company, behave as if he owned it? Poison pills should be outlawed. It should be the majority of shareholders — the real owners of the company — who should make the decisions,” he said. So far nearly 11% of PeopleSoft’s outstanding stock has been signed up to Oracle’s offer. Last week, Oracle extended the tender period until July 18 from July 7. Bureau Report
In an interview with Italy’s Corriere della Sera newspaper, Mr Ellison was asked if Oracle, the world’s second largest software group, would do just that. “I don’t know,” he was quoted as saying. “Obviously we would like to pay as little as possible. The problem is that PeopleSoft’s CEO has said he won’t sell at any price.” PeopleSoft has vociferously rejected Oracle’s bid and added “poison pills” to the potion — agreeing a $1.77 bn merger with smaller rival JD Edwards & Co and creating new contracts that would require any PeopleSoft buyer to refund clients up to five times the value of their licence agreement.
Analysts have said the PeopleSoft-JD Edwards merger, which could take Oracle’s number-two global software spot, may force Oracle to abandon the chase as a deal to buy the new group would face higher regulatory hurdles and put profits under pressure.
Mr Ellison had the harshest words for PeopleSoft’s poison pills, which Oracle is challenging in a court case. “How can a manager, who has the duty of running a company, behave as if he owned it? Poison pills should be outlawed. It should be the majority of shareholders — the real owners of the company — who should make the decisions,” he said. So far nearly 11% of PeopleSoft’s outstanding stock has been signed up to Oracle’s offer. Last week, Oracle extended the tender period until July 18 from July 7. Bureau Report