A woman holds a smartphone in front of a screen displaying both Nokia and Alcatel Lucent logos in this photo illustration in Paris. Nokia Oyj is in talks to buy Alcatel-Lucent. File Photo
Nokia Chief Executive Rajeev Suri defended the terms of its pending acquisition of smaller telecom gear maker Alcatel-Lucent after a shareholder criticised them as unacceptable.
Odey Asset Management, Alcatel-Lucent's second-largest shareholder with 5 per cent, said in a letter to investors that it would not tender its shares in the Nokia takeover because the 15.6 billion euro price in the all-share deal was too low, according to the Financial Times newspaper.
"We've met many investors in the last couple weeks, and there's very strong, good feedback," Suri said on a call after first-quarter results.
He declined to say whether the terms of the deal would be altered, adding only that both boards had already approved them. "Fundamentally this is a good deal with attractive upside in long-term and upfront."
Alcatel-Lucent shareholders do not need to vote to ratify the deal since it will go through as long as 51 per cent of shares are tendered.
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Published on April 30, 2015
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