General Electric, L3Harris Competed For Aerojet Takeover
Industrial conglomerate General Electric Co (NYSE: GE) and defense contractor L3Harris Technologies, Inc (NYSE: LHX) were among those competing to acquire rocket maker Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings, Inc (NYSE: AJRD).
Aircraft producer Textron Inc (NYSE: TXT) and private equity firm Veritas Capital also vied to snap El Segundo, California-based Aerojet, which has a market value of about $4 billion, Reuters reported.
Aerojet ran a process to sell itself after its $4.4 billion sale to Lockheed Martin Corp (NYSE: LMT) was thwarted by antitrust regulators in February.
If the negotiations conclude successfully, they could forge a deal by the end of December.
Aerojet does not see in the line-up of bidders the antitrust issues that led to the demise of its deal with Lockheed because none of the suitors are direct competitors or share much of the same supply chain.
Aerojet develops and manufactures liquid and solid rocket propulsion and hypersonic engines for space, defense, civil and commercial applications. Its customers include the Pentagon, Boeing Co (NYSE: BA), Lockheed Martin, and Raytheon Technologies Corp (NYSE: RTX).
Activist hedge fund Elliott Investment Management disclosed it had accumulated a 3.7% stake in Aerojet in August.
Aerojet prevailed in a battle for control of its board against former Executive Chairman Warren Lichtenstein last summer but remained under pressure to boost its performance.
Aerojet Rocketdyne declined to comment on the reports that GE or L3harris were among suitors for the company.
Price Action: AJRD shares closed higher by 4.1% at $52 on Wednesday.
See more from Benzinga
Don't miss real-time alerts on your stocks - join Benzinga Pro for free! Try the tool that will help you invest smarter, faster, and better.
© 2022 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
