Thermo Electron/Puritan-Bennett
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
Sixty-seven percent of P-B shareholders have agreed to tender their shares for $24.50 each, Thermo announces in a Nov. 23 investor teleconference. Due to the P-B shareholder response, Thermo has extended its tender offer, scheduled to have expired Nov. 22, until midnight Nov. 28. Thermo's Chief Financial Officer John Hatsopoulos called the 67.3% response "a wonderful vote of confidence" and urged P-B's board to "listen to its shareholders." Hatsopoulos did not rule out a proxy battle but indicated that Thermo has no plans to attempt to overturn anti-takeover measures through litigation. Thermo initiated its $24.50 offer on Oct. 25. After P-B's board determined that the offer was inadequate, Hatsopoulos maintained that it was his firm's "best offer" in a Nov. 9 teleconference ("The Gray Sheet" Nov. 14, I&W-6). In that story, "The Gray Sheet" incorrectly identified John Hatsopoulos as his brother, company President and Chairman George Hatsopoulos