Benzinga's M&A Chatter for Tuesday April 10, 2012

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Tuesday April 10, 2012: eResearchTechnology Announces Acquisition by Genstar Capital The Deal:
eResearchTechnology ERT announced Tuesday that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by affiliates of Genstar Capital LLC, a leading middle market private equity firm for $8.00 per share in cash in a transaction valued at approximately $400 million. The proposed transaction has been approved unanimously by the ERT Board of Directors, following a recommendation by a Special Committee of independent directors, and recommends that ERT shareholders approve the transaction. The $8.00 per share purchase price represents a premium of approximately 38% over ERT's average closing share price for the 90 trading days ending on April 9, 2012 and 42% over the 52-week average. eResearchTechnology closed at $7.90 Tuesday, a gain of 0.77% on 50 times the average daily volume. Amgen to Acquire Privately Held KAI Pharmaceuticals The Deal:
Amgen AMGN and KAI Pharmaceuticals today announced an agreement under which Amgen will acquire KAI, a privately held pharmaceutical company based in South San Francisco. KAI's lead product candidate, KAI-4169, is a novel agent being initially studied for the treatment of secondary hyperparathyroidism in patients with chronic kidney disease CKD who are on dialysis. SHPT, a component of CKD mineral and bone disorder, is a common and serious complication for patients with CKD who are on dialysis. Through this acquisition, Amgen will acquire worldwide rights, excluding Japan, to KAI-4169. Under terms of the agreement, Amgen will pay $315 million in cash to acquire KAI. In connection with the parties' entering into the agreement, Amgen has provided a loan to enable Phase 3 clinical development planning for KAI-4169 prior to closing. The transaction has been approved by the stockholders of KAI and approved by the Board of Directors of each company. Completion of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. Following the completion of the transaction, KAI will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Amgen. J.P. Morgan Securities LLC acted as exclusive financial advisor and Latham & Watkins acted as legal advisor to KAI on the transaction. Amgen was advised by Sullivan & Cromwell LLP. AMGN closed at $66.19 Tuesday, a loss of 1.24% on 68% of the average daily volume. SAP to Acquire Syclo The Deal:
In a move that will drive innovation in mobile solutions for businesses of all sizes, SAP AG SAP today announced plans to acquire Syclo, a leading provider of enterprise mobile applications and technologies. The addition of Syclo's expertise in building and selling mobile solutions in industries such as utilities, oil & gas, life sciences and manufacturing will immediately enhance SAP mobile solutions. It will also accelerate the adoption and deployment of new mobile asset management and field service solutions on Sybase Unwired Platform, part of the SAP mobile platform and the company's infrastructure for developing and managing mobile apps. The announcement was made at a press conference held this morning in San Francisco. SAP closed at $64.57 Tuesday, a loss of 2.09% on twice the average daily volume. Hearing Renewed Chatter of Microsoft Interest in Research in Motion Acquisition The Rumor:
Microsoft MSFTis prepared to make a $3.5 billion investment in Research in Motion RIMM, according to sources. The two companies have been frequently mentioned in potential deals over the past few months. AOL's announced sale of 800 patents to Microsoft on Monday, raised interest in RIMM's patent portfolio. A Research in Motion spokesperson would not comment on the rumor. A Microsoft spokesperson was not aware of the rumor. Research in Motion closed at $12.93 Tuesday, a loss of 0.69% on slightly more than average volume. Hearing BMW in Talks to Acquire Tesla Motors The Rumor:
BMW is in talks to acquire Tesla Motors TSLA for between $60 and $80 per share, according to sources. A BMW spokesperson said the rumor was "not true". A Tesla spokesperson was not available for comment. Tesla Motors closed at $32.46 Tuesday, a loss of 2.08% on 1.5 times the average daily volume. Hearing Warren Buffett Targeting Joy Global The Rumor:
Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway BRK is looking to acquire Joy Global JOY, according to sources. Previous rumored buyers include Deere DE and Japan's Komatsu (KMTUY). A Joy Global spokesperson was not available for comment. Joy Global closed at $72.04 Tuesday, a loss of 1.15% on 1.3 times the average daily volume. Hearing Renewed Chatter of Shell Offer for Range Resources The Rumor:
Royal Dutch Shell RDS is rumored to be in talks once again with Range Resources RRC, according to sources. Carl Icahn was rumored to be taking a stake in Range Resources on April 3. Spokespersons for Range Resources and Shell were not available for comment. Range Resources closed at $56.79 Tuesday, a gain of 0.53% on slightly more than the average daily volume. China's CNOOC Preparing $12B Bid For YPF The Rumor:
China's CNOOC is preparing an offer of $12 billion to acquire YPF YPF, according to El Confidential. Argentina had considered nationalizing YPF last month, but decided against it. A spokesperson for YPF was not available for comment. YPF closed at $22.22 Tuesday, a loss of 2.03% on average volume. Hearing Chevron Has Offered $42 Per Share to Acquire Southwestern Energy The Rumor:
Chevron CVX has offered $42 per share to acquire Southwestern Energy SWN, according to sources. On February 2, ConocoPhillips COP was the rumored buyer at $43 per share. Spokespersons for Southwestern Energy and Chevron were not available for comment. Southwestern Energy closed at $29.30 Tuesday, a gain of 0.93% on 1.5 times the average daily volume. Hearing Renewed Chatter of Shandong Gold Offer for Jaguar Mining The Rumor:
Shares of Shandong Gold have been suspended in Shanghai leading to to renewed speculation the company will pursue and acquisition of Jaguar Mining JAG. On November 16, 2011 Shandong offered $9.30 per share in cash to acquire Jaguar Mining. A large block trade of 8,435 contracts in the June 9 Jaguar call was made at 11:42 this morning. A spokesperson for Jaguar Mining did not return calls placed by Benzinga. Jaguar Mining closed at $4.61 Tuesday, a gain of 14.11% on almost 7 times the average daily volume. CNBC Mentions TiVo as a Possible Takeover Target The Rumor:
Shares of TiVo TIVO rose sharply after comments on CNBC that the company is possibly a takeover target. All of the gains were quickly erased however. TiVo is one of the speculative names mentioned recently as possible acquisition targets based on their patents. Last month TiVo and Microsoft agreed to end patent suits against each other. TiVo closed at $11.02 Tuesday, a loss of 2.3% on slightly more than average volume.