Here is your Pro Recap of four head-turning deal dispatches you may have missed this week: IBM and Apptio merger rumors, Eli Lilly acquires Dice Therapeutics, Amazon's iRobot acquisition faces EU antitrust investigation, and Stratasys determines 3D Systems' offer not a 'Superior Proposal' to Desktop Metal agreement.
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IBM to acquire Apptio for $5 billion, says WSJ
IBM (NYSE:IBM) is close to buying cloud-focused software firm Apptio for around $5 billion, per the Wall Street Journal - and the deal could be finalized over the weekend, according to the people familiar with the matter. Neither IBM nor Apptio have commented on the matter.
The acquisition aligns with IBM's recent trend of software purchases like Turbonomic in 2021 and Red Hat in 2019.
IBM is expected to report Q2 earnings next month, with analysts looking for a slight rise in revenue but a drop in earnings per share to $2.01 from last year's $2.31
Eli Lilly to acquire Dice Therapeutics for $2.4B
Dice Therapeutics (NASDAQ:DICE) shares jumped more than 37% on Tuesday after Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) said it has agreed to acquire the biotech company for $48 per share in cash, an aggregate of approximately $2.4B.
Amazon's iRobot acquisition to face EU antitrust investigation
Amazon's (NASDAQ:AMZN) $1.7B acquisition of iRobot (NASDAQ:IRBT) is set to undergo an EU antitrust investigation, Reuters reported on Thursday. According to the sources familiar with the matter, the European Commission is planning to undertake a four-month investigation into the deal after the end of its preliminary review acquisition on July 6. Reuters sources suggest Amazon may yet convince the EU of the deal's pro-competitive nature, but the odds are high against it.
iRobot shares fell around 15% this week.
Another report on Thursday led to a surge in Ocado (LON:OCDO) share prices by around 43%. The catalyst was rumors of a potential takeover by Amazon. The Times suggested that Amazon, in collaboration with investment banks JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, could make an offer, valuing Ocado at around £6.6B ($7.67B).
Stratasys says 3D Systems' offer not a 'Superior Proposal' to Desktop Metal agreement
Stratasys (NASDAQ:SSYS) announced that its Board of Directors determined that the May 30 unsolicited non-binding indicative proposal from 3D Systems (NYSE:DDD) to acquire Stratasys does not constitute a “Superior Proposal” and does not provide a basis upon which to enter into discussions with 3D Systems, pursuant to the terms of the merger agreement with Desktop Metal Inc (NYSE:DM).
Stratasys saw a surge in shares prices since the start of the month after it announced it had received an unsolicited cash-and-stock offer from 3D Systems to acquire the company: $7.50 in cash and 1.2507 newly issued 3D Systems shares per ordinary Stratasys share.
Jeffrey Graves, CEO of 3D Systems, voiced his disappointment over Stratasys' decision, stating that they remain undeterred in the belief that a transaction between 3D Systems and Stratasys on the terms proposed constitutes a ‘Superior Proposal.’
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