Ulticom Inc. Agrees to Be Acquired by Affiliate of Platinum Equity
October 12 2010 - 4:30PM
Business Wire
Ulticom, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULCM) (“Ulticom” or “Company”) announced
today that it has signed a definitive merger agreement with
affiliates of Platinum Equity, LLC providing for the acquisition of
Ulticom by an affiliate of Platinum Equity for merger consideration
of $2.33 per share in cash, after payment of a special dividend in
the amount of $5.74 per share in cash. Shares held by Ulticom's
controlling shareholder, Comverse Technology, Inc. ("Comverse")
will be purchased by Platinum Equity’s affiliate pursuant to a
separate share purchase agreement immediately prior to the closing
of the merger. Under the terms of the share purchase agreement,
Comverse will receive up to $2.33 per share, with a portion of such
amount to be deferred and at risk based on the Company’s financial
performance post-closing. The $8.07 per share to be received by
shareholders represents approximately a 5% premium to the closing
price of the Company's common stock on October 11, 2010 and
approximately a 4% premium to the average closing price for the
prior 30 days.
Under the terms of the definitive merger agreement, which was
unanimously approved by Ulticom’s Board of Directors, Ulticom’s
public shareholders will receive $2.33 per share in cash, after
payment of a special dividend by the Company of $5.74 per share.
The special dividend is subject to shareholder approval of the
transaction and will be paid prior to the purchase of the Comverse
shares and the merger, to shareholders of record at the close of
business on November 24, 2010. The Company anticipates that
pursuant to NASD Rule 11140, the ex-dividend date will be the day
after the dividend payment date. Accordingly, the stock will
continue to trade with the right to receive the dividend after the
record date.
The transaction is expected to close by the end of the Company’s
fourth fiscal quarter of 2010 and is subject to customary closing
conditions, regulatory approvals, approval by Ulticom's
shareholders, including a majority of Ulticom shares that are not
owned by Comverse, and payment of the special dividend. The
transaction is not conditioned on receipt of financing by the
acquirer. A special meeting of Company shareholders is currently
scheduled for December 2, 2010 at 9 a.m. local time, to be held at
the Enterprise Center at Burlington County College, 3331 Route 38,
Mount Laurel, New Jersey 08054. The Board of Directors of Ulticom
has established a record date of the close of business on October
26, 2010 to determine shareholders entitled to vote at the special
meeting.
“After a careful and extensive review of our strategic
alternatives, our Board of Directors has determined that the
premium to the current market price provided by this transaction
offers the best value for our stockholders,” said Shawn Osborne,
Ulticom president and chief executive officer. “Furthermore,
Platinum Equity’s financial resources and experience with
communication and information technology companies will reinforce
Ulticom’s ability to enhance our product portfolio and market
position.”
“Ulticom has a solid reputation for quality and innovation, and
is one of the premier providers of critical technology in wireless
and broadband networks,” said Matt Young, Principal for Platinum
Equity. “There is opportunity for growth as the demand for
high-bandwidth services continues to evolve, and we’re eager to
help Ulticom drive that growth.”
Morgan Keegan Technology Group acted as lead financial advisor
to Ulticom and Duff & Phelps, LLC also provided a fairness
opinion to Ulticom’s Board of Directors. Weil, Gotshal & Manges
LLP acted as legal counsel to Ulticom in the transaction and
Flaster/Greenberg P.C. acted as special New Jersey Counsel to
Ulticom. Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP acted as legal
counsel to Platinum Equity.
Additional information and where to
find it
Ulticom intends to file with the Securities and Exchange
Commission a proxy statement and other relevant materials in
connection with the transactions. When finalized, the proxy
statement will be mailed to the stockholders of Ulticom. INVESTORS
AND SECURITY HOLDERS OF THE COMPANY ARE URGED TO READ ALL RELEVANT
DOCUMENTS FILED WITH, OR FURNISHED TO, THE SEC, INCLUDING THE
COMPANY’S PROXY STATEMENT WHEN IT BECOMES AVAILABLE, BECAUSE THEY
WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION.
The proxy statement and other relevant materials (when they become
available), and any other documents filed by Ulticom with the SEC,
may be obtained free of charge at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov.
In addition, investors and stockholders of Ulticom may obtain free
copies of the proxy statement (when available) and other documents
filed by Ulticom with the SEC from Ulticom’s website at
www.Ulticom.com.
Participants in the
solicitation
Ulticom and its directors and executive officers may be deemed
to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from Ulticom’s
stockholders in connection with the transactions. Information about
Ulticom’s directors and executive officers is set forth in the
proxy statement on Schedule 14A for Ulticom’s 2010 Annual Meeting
of Stockholders filed with the SEC on April 28, 2010 and in the
Annual Report on Form 10-K filed by Ulticom with the SEC on April
20, 2010. Additional information regarding the participants in the
solicitation, including a description of their direct and indirect
interests, by security holdings or otherwise, will be included in
the proxy statement that Ulticom intends to file with the SEC.
About Ulticom, Inc.
Ulticom (www.ulticom.com) provides service essential signaling
component and system solutions for wireless, wireline, and Internet
communications. Ulticom's products are used by leading
telecommunication equipment and service providers worldwide to
deploy broadband mobile access, multimedia transport control,
subscriber data management and enhanced communication services.
Ulticom is headquartered in Mount Laurel, NJ with additional
offices in the United States, Europe, and Asia.
About Platinum Equity
Platinum Equity (www.platinumequity.com) is a global
M&A&O® firm specializing in the merger, acquisition and
operation of companies that provide services and solutions to
customers in a broad range of business markets, including
information technology, telecommunications, logistics, metals
services, manufacturing and distribution. Since its founding in
1995 by Tom Gores, Platinum Equity has completed over 100
acquisitions with more than $27.5 billion in aggregate annual
revenue at the time of acquisition.
Forward Looking
Statements
Note: This Press Release contains “forward-looking statements”
that involve risks and uncertainties, including statements relating
to the Company’s future business performance and the proposed
transactions with Platinum Equity. Important factors that could
cause actual results to differ materially include the timing of
consummating the proposed transactions, the risk that a condition
to closing of the proposed transactions may not be satisfied and
those risks described in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 20,
2010. The Company makes no commitment to revise or update any
forward-looking statements in order to reflect events or
circumstances after the date any such statement is made, except as
otherwise required by the federal securities laws.
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