Oracle’s Larry Ellison rattled his sabre. Shares of BEA
Systems fell 5 percent to $16.53 in Thursday afternoon trading. Is that the end
of Oracle’s courtship for the maker of middleware?
Don’t bet on it.
After Oracle’s initial unsolicited bid in October worth
$6.7 billion, BEA Systems countered that it was worth a fair sight more--$21
per share.
Adding to the pressure on BEA is financier Carl Icahn,
who scooped up a truckload of BEA stock, making him the largest shareholder.
Then, on Wednesday night, Mr. Ellison told analysts that
any future offers for BEA will come in lower than $17 per share and that the
company might turn its attention to other acquisition targets.
That pronouncement could well turn out to be
gamesmanship, just another chess move to pressure a takeover target.
Still, if BEA’s stock price continues to retreat along
with those of other tech stocks, Oracle’s original offer could look
mighty appealing.