FT sees $500m price tag for GilatThe "Financial Times" reports that the Gores Group, Apollo Management, and ViaSat are among the bidders for the satellite communications group.
Erez Wollberg 22 Oct 07 09:51
The "Financial Times" reports that satellite communications company Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. (Nasdaq: GILT; TASE: GILT) could be sold for $500 million. The newspaper also says that the company is working with UBS to evaluate interest from several strategic and private equity buyers in buying it.
Gilat's shares closed at $10.32 in New York on Friday, giving the company a market cap of $402 million. The share price is at its highest level since the technology bubble.
The "Financial Times" said that several buy out firms had expressed an interest in Gilat, among them the California-based Gores Group, which is run by entrepreneur Alec Gores. In June the company closed its second private equity fund at $1.3bn, and has several telecommunications equipment companies in its portfolio.
Another potential bidder is investment house Apollo Management, which has made numerous satellite investments in recent years. The "Financial Times says that Apollo could merge Gilat into Hughes, one of its portfolio companies. Also in the running for Gilat is ViaSat Inc. (Nasdaq: VSAT) a competitor from Californias.
The "Financial Times" says that Gilat, UBS, Hughes, Gores and ViaSat declined to comment. "A sale of Gilat would follow a period of dramatic consolidation in the global satellite industry. In 2005, PanAmSat merged with Intelsat to create the world’s largest satellite operator in a $3.2bn deal," it noted.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on October 22, 2007
_________________________________________________
500mil/40mil shares=$12.5 per share