Just days after Xerox threatened to make its takeover bid hostile by approaching HP Inc’s shareholders, HP Inc has issued a strongly worded statement, “We will not let aggressive tactics or hostile gestures distract us from our responsibility to pursue the most value-creating path.”The letter to Xerox pointed out that the HP Board of Directors is committed to serving the best interests of HP shareholders, not Xerox and its shareholders.
“We believe it is important to emphasize that we are not dependent on a Xerox combination. We have great confidence in our strategy and the numerous opportunities available to HP to drive sustainable long-term value, including the deployment of our strong balance sheet for increased share repurchases of our significantly undervalued stock and for value-creating M&A,” said the statement.
It goes on to list reasons why the Xerox bid was of concern: missed revenue estimates in four of the last five quarters, fallen revenue, dependence on contractual revenue, questionable synergies, and the cessable of Xerox’s joint venture with Fujifilm.
It looks like this tussle may not be over yet. The ball’s in Xerox’s court now.
Entelechy Asia 