Shares in Intelek Plc (LON:ITK) rocketed by more than 100% to 31.25p this morning on news that Teledyne Technologies Inc (NYSE:TDY) had agreed to make a 32p per share offer for the AIM listed electronics group. Teledyne’s offer values Intelek at around £28m and represents a 106.5% premium over the company’s closing share price of 15.5p yesterday. Teledyne, which has a market cap of US$1.4bn, develops sophisticated electronic components and subsystems, instrumentation and communications products. It said it wanted to buy Intelek in order to extend its presence and know-how in activities adjacent to its current ones. Intelek designs and manufactures electronic systems for satellite and microwave communication with a focus on the defence and satellite communications markets.
Commenting on the offer, Ian Brodie, Intelek’s chief executive, said: “The directors of Intelek have focused our strategy on further developing our satellite and microwave communications business as a core value driver for the Intelek Group. This offer for Intelek is at a substantial premium and we unanimously recommend that shareholders accept this offer.”
Robert Mehrabian, Teledyne’s chairman, president and chief executive, said: “We are delighted that the directors of Intelek have decided unanimously to recommend the offer to their shareholders which is at a significant premium to Intelek's share price in the 12 months prior to the offer date. The combination of Intelek with Teledyne should place Intelek in a much stronger position to realise its growth potential.”
Intelek’s directors, who control 5.62% of the company’s share capital, have backed the deal. They are joined by majority shareholder Rights & Issues Investment Trust plc, with a 14.31% stake, which has also given an irrevocable undertaking to support the offer along with best endeavours undertaking from other shareholders representing 5.72% of the share capital. In the year to March, Intelek posted annual results ahead of management expectations, with sales down 4% to £37.7m and underlying pre-tax profits also down 4% to 3.9m.