Why Is Anadarko Talking to Occidental Again?

By Paul Ausick Updated Jan 30, 9:26PM EST · Published Apr 29, 8:20AM EDT

This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them.

Why Is Anadarko Talking to Occidental Again? — © Thinkstock

Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: APC) said Monday morning that it intends to resume negotiations with Occidental Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: OXY | OXY Price Prediction) as a result of Oxy’s offer to pay more for the independent exploration and production company than Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) offered two weeks earlier. Including the assumption of Anadarko debt, Oxy has offered to pay around $57 billion, considerably more than the $50 billion offer from Chevron that Anadarko has already accepted.

According to the announcement, the agreement with Chevron “remains in effect and accordingly the Anadarko board reaffirms its existing recommendation of the transaction with Chevron at this time.”

However, Anadarko’s board has “unanimously determined” that Oxy’s offer “could reasonably be expected to result in a ‘Superior Proposal’ as defined in the Chevron Merger Agreement.” Oxy’s proposal, according to Anadarko “reflects a significant improvement” over previous proposals to acquire the company.

Occidental proposes to acquire Anadarko for $38 in cash and 0.6094 of a share of Oxy’s common stock for each share of Anadarko stock. Oxy’s offer amounts to $76 a share, or around $38 billion.

[nativounit]

The Chevron deal pays Anadarko shareholders $16.25 in cash and 0.3869 of a share of Chevron stock for each share of Anadarko common stock. Chevron’s offer is valued at $65 a share, or around $33 billion.

Even though Anadarko’s board says it continues to prefer Chevron’s offer, it must consider an offer that is at least 20% more valuable to its shareholders. Dismissing the Oxy offer out of hand opens the Anadarko board to all sorts of legal claims related to its fiduciary responsibilities.

The bonus is that Chevron is highly likely to sweeten its offer, adding more cash and reducing the amount of stock. Analysts at Mizuho told Barron’s that Chevron’s “last and final” bid would likely be around $72 a share.

The Anadarko announcement has sent Oxy shares down about 2.5% in premarket trading Monday to $59.80, in a 52-week range of $56.83 to $87.67. Between last Wednesday, when Oxy announced its offer, and Friday’s close, the company’s share lost $1.05; shares have lost $1.51 this morning. The larger drop this morning likely means that investors are taking the bid more seriously now than they were last week.

Anadarko shares traded down about 0.4% in Monday’s premarket, at $72.50 in a 52-week range of $40.40 to $76.70, while Chevron stock was unchanged at $117.10 in a 52-week range of $100.22 to $131.08.
[recirclink id=543995]
[wallst_email_signup]

DISCLOSURE:

Customer must fund their Active Invest account with at least $50 within 45 days of opening the account. Receive a minimum of $15. Probability of member receiving $3,000 is a probability of 0.026% If you don’t make a selection in 45 days, you’ll no longer qualify for the promo. Percentages for the $3,000 are subject to decrease. See full terms and conditions.

INVESTMENTS ARE NOT FDIC INSURED • ARE NOT BANK GUARANTEED • MAY LOSE VALUE Brokerage and Active investing products offered through SoFi Securities LLC, member FINRA(www.finra.org)/SIPC(www.sipc.org). Advisory services are offered by SoFi Wealth LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. Information about SoFi Wealth’s advisory operations, services, and fees is set forth in SoFi Wealth’s current Form ADV Part 2 (Brochure), a copy of which is available upon request and at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov. Probability of Member receiving $1,000 is a probability of 0.026%; If you don’t make a selection in 30 days, you’ll no longer qualify for the promo. Customer must fund their account with a minimum of $50.00 to qualify. Other fees, such as exchange fees, may apply. Please view our fee disclosure to view a full listing of fees. Investing in alternative investments and/or strategies may not be suitable for all investors and involves unique risks, including the risk of loss. An investor should consider their individual circumstances and any investment information, such as a prospectus, prior to investing. Interval Funds are illiquid instruments, the ability to trade on your timeline may be restricted. Brokerage and Active investing products offered through SoFi Securities LLC, Member FINRA(www.finra.org) /SIPC(www.sipc.org). There are limitations with fractional shares to consider before investing. During market hours fractional share orders are transmitted immediately in the order received. There may be system delays from receipt of your order until execution and market conditions may adversely impact execution prices. Outside of market hours orders are received on a not held basis and will be aggregated for each security then executed in the morning trade window of the next business day at market open. Share will be delivered at an average price received for executing the securities through a single batched order. Fractional shares may not be transferred to another firm. Fractional shares will be sold when a transfer or closure request is initiated. Please consider that selling securities is a taxable event. Options involve risks, including substantial risk of loss and the possibility an investor may lose the entire investment Before trading options please review the Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options Investing in an Initial Public Offering (IPO) involves substantial risk, including the risk of loss. Further, there are a variety of risk factors to consider when investing in an IPO, including but not limited to, unproven management, significant debt, and lack of operating history. For a comprehensive discussion of these risks please refer to SoFi Securities’ IPO Risk Disclosure Statement This should not be considered a recommendation to participate in IPOs and investors should carefully read the offering prospectus to determine whether an offering is consistent with their investment objectives, risk tolerance, and financial situation. New offerings generally have high demand and there are a limited number of shares available for distribution to participants. Many customers may not be allocated shares and share allocations may be significantly smaller than the shares requested in the customer’s initial offer (Indication of Interest). For more information on the allocation process please visit IPO Allocation.

Follow 24/7 Wall St. on Google

About the Author Paul Ausick →

Paul Ausick has been writing for 247Wallst.com for more than a decade. He has written extensively on investing in the energy, defense, and technology sectors. In a previous life, he wrote technical documentation and managed a marketing communications group in Silicon Valley.

He has a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Chicago and now lives in Montana, where he fishes for trout in the summer and stays inside during the winter.