China Electronics Corp (CEC, 中國電子), China’s largest state-owned information technology company, is in preliminary talks to acquire US-based Atmel Corp, people with knowledge of the process said.
CEC is discussing a bid for Atmel, a maker of chips used in industrial machinery and cars, at about US$8.50 per share and the two sides are negotiating, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the information is private.
Atmel closed at US$8.18 in New York trading on Wednesday, down from a high of $10.44 in June, giving the San Jose, California-based company a market value of about US$3.4 billion.
There is no guarantee a deal will be reached and talks might still fall apart. The thin premium being discussed and regulatory scrutiny that would come with a Chinese buyer raise the risks that a deal will not materialize, according to one of the people familiar with the situation.
A combination of CEC with Atmel would probably be subject to approval from the US’ Committee on Foreign Investment, the person said.
There is also the possibility that other suitors could emerge and an agreement could be reached with a different company.
The thin premium implied by the offer price compared with Wednesday’s close is at odds with industry deals done earlier this year.
Intel Corp, the world’s biggest chipmaker, said in June that it was to pay US$54 per share for Altera Corp, 11 percent more than the company’s share price at the time and a 56 percent bump over where it had traded before speculation of an acquisition.
Atmel shares fell 9.2 percent in New York trading on Thursday, the largest decline in more than 11 months, to close at US$7.43.
Atmel last month said it has been considering strategic options. Any sale would extend a record year for semiconductor deals, as chipmakers combine to counter slowing growth and increasing costs.
China has been picking up US chip-related assets as it tries to flesh out its domestic capabilities and replace imports of crucial electronics components.
Atmel spokeswoman Agnes Toan said the company does not comment on rumors or speculation. A spokeswoman for Beijing-based CEC said she could not immediately comment.
CEC has more than 70,000 employees in operations including chip design, computer manufacturing and telecommunications equipment production, according to its Web site.
The group, whose Web site features a faded photograph of Mao Zedong (毛澤東) inspecting one of its radio factories in 1956, has at least a dozen listed units, including China Greatwall Computer Shenzhen Co (中國長城計算機深圳) and Nanjing Panda Electronics Co (熊貓電子).
Atmel specializes in microcontrollers, small chips that perform a range of functions such as converting the touch of a button into an action in a car or factory machine.
The company is trying to extend the use of its products into the Internet of Things — the spread of connectivity and electronic functionality into everyday items.
Intel Corp chief executive officer Lip-Bu Tan (陳立武) is expected to meet with Taiwanese suppliers next month in conjunction with the opening of the Computex Taipei trade show, supply chain sources said on Monday. The visit, the first for Tan to Taiwan since assuming his new post last month, would be aimed at enhancing Intel’s ties with suppliers in Taiwan as he attempts to help turn around the struggling US chipmaker, the sources said. Tan is to hold a banquet to celebrate Intel’s 40-year presence in Taiwan before Computex opens on May 20 and invite dozens of Taiwanese suppliers to exchange views
Application-specific integrated circuit designer Faraday Technology Corp (智原) yesterday said that although revenue this quarter would decline 30 percent from last quarter, it retained its full-year forecast of revenue growth of 100 percent. The company attributed the quarterly drop to a slowdown in customers’ production of chips using Faraday’s advanced packaging technology. The company is still confident about its revenue growth this year, given its strong “design-win” — or the projects it won to help customers design their chips, Faraday president Steve Wang (王國雍) told an online earnings conference. “The design-win this year is better than we expected. We believe we will win
Chizuko Kimura has become the first female sushi chef in the world to win a Michelin star, fulfilling a promise she made to her dying husband to continue his legacy. The 54-year-old Japanese chef regained the Michelin star her late husband, Shunei Kimura, won three years ago for their Sushi Shunei restaurant in Paris. For Shunei Kimura, the star was a dream come true. However, the joy was short-lived. He died from cancer just three months later in June 2022. He was 65. The following year, the restaurant in the heart of Montmartre lost its star rating. Chizuko Kimura insisted that the new star is still down
While China’s leaders use their economic and political might to fight US President Donald Trump’s trade war “to the end,” its army of social media soldiers are embarking on a more humorous campaign online. Trump’s tariff blitz has seen Washington and Beijing impose eye-watering duties on imports from the other, fanning a standoff between the economic superpowers that has sparked global recession fears and sent markets into a tailspin. Trump says his policy is a response to years of being “ripped off” by other countries and aims to bring manufacturing to the US, forcing companies to employ US workers. However, China’s online warriors
RSS