Roche’s Ventana bid advances in court
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
Ventana Medical Systems is preliminarily enjoined from using certain anti-takeover provisions to avert Roche's $3 billion hostile bid for the Tucson-based cancer diagnostics firm under an Arizona federal district court decision Aug. 21. Swiss firm Roche launched its $75-per-share tender offer for Ventana June 27, and has extended the offer's expiration date from Aug. 23 to Sept. 20. The offer represents a 44% premium over Ventana's last stock closing price before the bid was announced, although the market price has since soared as high as $88. Ventana says it remains "steadfast" in its belief that Roche's bid is "wholly inadequate" (1"The Gray Sheet" July 2, 2007, p. 10)...