Stratasys jumps after Nano Dimension increases offer to $19.55 a share (update)
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Update 8:50pm: Adds Stratasys comment.
Stratasys (NASDAQ:SSYS) rose 8.7% after Nano Dimension (NASDAQ:NNDM) raised its offer for the 3D printing company to $19.55 a share after its earlier offer was rejected. Nano Dimension ticked up 0.4%.
Under the offer Nano Dimension (NNDM) would acquire the remaining shares it doesn't already own for about $1.2 billion, according to a statement. The offer, a 9% premium to its original bid from earlier this month, represents a 37% premium to where Stratasys (SSYS) shares traded on March 3.
The increased offer comes after Stratasys (SSYS) last Wednesday rejected an $18 a share cash offer from Nano Dimension, saying it would not be in the best interest of shareholders.
Stratasys (SSYS) confirmed in a statement that it received the unsolicited Nano Dimension (NNDM) bid and will review and evaluate it and reiterated that its board rejected the original offer as it "substantially undervalued" the 3D company.
The Stratasys (SSYS) rejection came after Nano Dimension (NNDM) has been engaged in a fight with it largest shareholder Murchinson, which is trying to get board seats and seeks the ouster of Stern. Murchinson said that it received "overwhelming support" for the removal of three directors and chairman at a vote earlier this month, a vote that Nano Dimension has called illegal.
“Our increased, all-cash offer demonstrates our commitment to consummating this strategic combination, which will deliver immediate and certain value to Stratasys shareholders at a compelling premium and enable us to create the preeminent leader in the rapidly growing AM market,” Yoav Stern, Nano Dimension’s Chairman and CEO said in the statement.
Murchinson is NNDM's largest holder with a 5.5% stake. Earlier this month, NNDM holder Anson Funds, which disclosed it had a 5.1% stake in a 13-D filing, urged the company to halt its planned offer for Stratasys (SSYS), specifically as NNDM was engaged in the proxy battle with Murchinson.