Wall Street's M&A Chatter From July 24: WebMD, Rent-A-Center, Platform Specialty Product

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Monday, July 24, 2017.

WebMD To Be Acquired By KKR's Internet Brands for $66.50/Share in Cash

The Deal:

WebMD Health Corp. WBMD and KKR portfolio company, Internet Brands, announced Monday that Internet Brands has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire WebMD for $66.50 per share in cash, in a transaction valued at approximately $2.8 billion. The WebMD Board of Directors approved the merger agreement.

The acquisition is expected to close during Q4 of 2017.

WebMD closed at $66.10, up $10.91.

UPL Considers Bid For Platform Specialty Products' Agrochemicals Division

The Rumor:

India's UPL is considering a more than $4 billion bid for the agrochemicals business of Platform Specialty Products Corp PAH, according to sources as reported by Reuters. The offer would compete with a previous bid from a consortium of Blackstone Group LP BX and CVC Capital Partners Ltd, the sources said. The New York Post later reported that Blackstone was in the final stages of a deal for agricultural chemical side of Platform's business.

Platform Specialty, UPL, Blackstone and CVC did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Platform Specialty Products closed at $13.46, up 50 cents.

Rent-A-Center Rejects Takeover Interest from HIG Capital, Lone Star Capital

The Rumor:

Rent-A-Center Inc RCII rebuffed takeover interest from private equity firms HIG Capital and Lone Star Funds prior to rejecting an $800 million offer from Vintage Capital this month, according to sources as reported by Reuters. HIG and Lone Star inidcated they would pay a premium for Rent-A-Center, though the specific offer price was unknown, the sources said.

Rent-A-Center declined comment on the report, while HIG and Lone Star did not immediately respond.

Rent-A-Center closed at $12.37, down 40 cents.