German Aixtron up on settled lawsuits, merger hopes
Mon Jan 3, 2005 03:59 AM ET
FRANKFURT, Jan 3 (Reuters) - Shares in Germany's Aixtron (AIXG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) rose almost 7 percent on Monday after the semiconductor equipment maker settled lawsuits against a share capital hike needed for the takeover of rival Genus (GGNS.O: Quote, Profile, Research) .
By 0837 GMT, the stock was up 4.9 percent at 3.20 euros, making it the top gainer in the tech-laden TECDAX .
Aixtron said late on Thursday all contestants had abandoned their lawsuits against a capital hike needed for the planned take over of U.S. firm Genus.
Equinet analyst Uwe Schuppp said the settlement paved the way for the deal, but added the planned merger was at least two months behind schedule.
"We prefer to await the conclusion of the merger with Genus before becoming more bullish," he said, sticking to his "hold" rating for the stock with a price target of 3.50 euros.
The firm, which is the world's leading maker of machines that plate wafers for LED (light-emitting diode) chips used in laptop computers and mobile phone displays, plans to issue 27 million shares to finance the merger.
It has offered 0.51 of its American Depositary Receipts per Genus common share, which valued the deal at announcement at 117.7 million euros. |
