Oracle increases PeopleSoft bid

IDG News Service - Oracle Corp. raised its bid for PeopleSoft Inc. to $26 per share today, boosting the all-cash offer's total to $9.4 billion.
Oracle began trying to acquire rival enterprise software maker PeopleSoft last June, initially offering PeopleSoft shareholders $16 per share, totaling $5.1 billion, for control of the company. Analysts and shareholders said Oracle was offering too little for PeopleSoft, and the company raised its bid to $19.50 per share.
After Pleasanton, Calif.-based PeopleSoft closed its August acquisition of J.D. Edwards & Co., increasing the number of shares in the company, the price tag for the acquisition climbed to $8.3 billion.
Today's new bid marks the first time Oracle has offered shareholders a significant premium on PeopleSoft's trading price. Shares of PeopleSoft ended trading yesterday on the Nasdaq Stock Market at $21.89, 15.8% lower than the $26 Oracle says it will pay.
Oracle also for the sixth time extended the deadline on its bid. Previously set to expire Feb. 13, the offer to shareholders is now valid through March 12.
This offer represents Oracle's final price, Oracle Chairman and Chief Financial Officer Jeff Henley said in a statement.
One obstacle to the attempted hostile takeover remains regulatory clearances from the U.S. Department of Justice and the European Union. The EU said recently that it will complete its inquiry by April 21. The Justice Department hasn't announced a timeline, but Oracle said today that it expects a decision before the March 12 conclusion of its offer.