Word: conoco
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1980-1989
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
Instead of ending the affair, however, the Du Pont-Conoco merger announcement merely unleashed a new flurry of financial maneuvering. Within four days, Texaco quietly arranged $5.5 billion in credit from a group of banks led by Chase Manhattan. Pundits speculated that Texaco was gearing up to boost its bid for Conoco or pursue another oil company. Meanwhile Edgar Bronfman, Seagram's tenacious chairman, was mulling his own countermove. He called his board of directors into a special session. The verdict: up the ante. The new offer: $85 per share for 51% of Conoco stock...
Then still another bidder joined the action. Mobil put together a $5 billion credit package, and Chairman Rawleigh Warner Jr. issued a statement leaving little doubt that his company was poised to pounce. Said he: "We know Conoco and the business it operates. Conoco is a great company with fine resources and excellent management and personnel." Surprisingly, Warner's message shrugged off possible Government objections, saying, "Preliminary studies indicate that a Mobil-Conoco merger would not create difficulties under existing antitrust guidelines...
Rather than wait for Mobil's move, Du Pont launched a pre-emptive strike. Chairman Jefferson called Conoco's Bailey with a sweetened offer: $7.6 billion, or $86.19 per Conoco share. At the same time, Du Pont went back to its banks to boost its line of credit from $3 billion to $4 billion in case it needed more money to capture Conoco...
...Conoco shareholders will determine whose offer wins. Though Mobil's bid is now the highest, analysts still believe that Du Pont has the best chance because of the antitrust uncertainty surrounding the oil firm's offer. Says Garo Armen, of the E.F. Hutton investment firm: "Du Pont has the edge even though Mobil's offer is higher. Seagram is out of the running on price...
Seagram's chances also received a blow last week when Conoco announced that it had received a warning letter from the Arab state of Dubai, where the firm pumps nearly a fourth of its oil supply. The letter said that Conoco's production in Dubai would be in "grave jeopardy" if the company were acquired by Seagram. Dubai's displeasure was seemingly caused by Bronfman's position as president of the World Jewish Congress...