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Our Bureau

Bangalore, Sept 26 Taking note of HCL Technologies’ counter bid, Infosys Technologies Ltd urged Axon shareholders not to take action at this time.

Axon Group Plc has convened an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders on October 20 to decide on the Infosys bid. The Court Meeting in connection with the Infosys bid would be held the same day.

In a statement late Friday, Infosys said it was considering its position and a further announcement will be made in due course. However, it was not clear whether the further announcement would relate to a higher counter bid by the company. Infosys is currently in a silent period ahead of second quarter results that will be announced on October 10.

“We have to evaluate and we have some 20-25 days time,” said Mr V. Balakrishnan, Chief Financial Officer, Infosys Technologies, without commenting further.

Analysts said it was too early to comment as to whether HCL Technologies’ bid for Axon would trigger a bidding war. “It all depends on the conservativeness of Infosys’ management,” an analyst with Mumbai-based brokerage said. Axon would be a better pick for Infosys considering its size, he said.

However, Mr Harit Shah, analyst with Angel Broking Ltd said HCL Technologies’ bid would stretch its balance sheet as the company would get into debt if the acquisition were successful. This would result in decline in earnings per share for HCL Technologies. “It’s a 3 to 5 years story for them,” Shah said.

Stating that it would be speculative to comment on Infosys’ proposed reaction, Mr Shah said “it is possible they might pull out of the bid.”

More Stories on : Software | Mergers & Acquisitions | Infosys Technologies Ltd

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