ASM Int'l spurns $800 mln bid for front-end activities

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- ASM International (asmi) (nl:33411) said it's rejected an offer of up to $800 million from Applied Materials (amat) and Francisco Partners for the Dutch chip equipment maker's front-end activities. The proposed deal would have seen Applied Materials buy its atomic layer deposition and plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition arms for between $400 million and $500 million, with Francisco Partners paying between $225 million and $300 million for the rest of the front-end units. "After due and careful consideration the Management and Supervisory Boards of ASMI believe that the unsolicited offer for part of our Company significantly undervalues the Front-End business and fails to reflect its future prospects. The wide offer value range, the complex structure of the combined offer and the unclear terms of the partnership furthermore represent significant uncertainty and execution risks for ASMI's shareholders, employees and other stakeholders," it said. U.S.-listed ASM shares edged up 0.3%.

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