WARNER BROS BOARD REJECTS BID FROM PARAMOUNT – Hostile offer rejected over battle for Warner Bros Discovery.
Warner Bros Discovery’s board rejected Paramount Skydance’s $108.4 billion hostile bid, saying it failed to provide adequate financing assurances.
In a letter to shareholders, disclosed in a regulatory filing, the board wrote that Paramount had “consistently misled” Warner Bros shareholders that its $30-per-share cash offer was fully guaranteed, or “backstopped,” by the Ellison family, led by billionaire and Oracle CEO Larry Ellison. “It does not, and never has,” the board wrote of the guarantee of Paramount’s offer, noting that the offer posed “numerous, significant risks.”
Warner Bros’ board also said it found Paramount’s offer “inferior” to the merger agreement with Netflix and the streaming giant’s $27.75 per share offer for Warner Bros’ film and television studios, its library and the HBO Max streaming service is a binding agreement that requires no equity financing and has robust debt commitments, the board wrote.
Paramount and Netflix did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
Warner Bros shares were down 0.5% at $28.7 in premarket trading, while Netflix gained 1.7% and Paramount fell 2.2%.
