With about two weeks to go before a major shareholders meeting, management at 3D printing company Stratasys has a firm message for investors: Support our bid to buy rival Desktop Metal and ignore 3D Systems Corp.’s bid to buy us.
In a letter to shareholders in advance of the Sept. 28 board meeting, Stratasys’ management said 3D Systems bid worked out to $15.26 per share, only a 3% premium over the stock’s price in late May. As the various 3D printing companies have bid to buy each other, stock prices have fluctuated wildly in the past few months. Stratasys shares peaked at more than $21 per share in July but have since fallen to $12.25 (as of midday Wednesday). At the current price, 3D Systems bid represents a 25% premium to Stratasys shares.
In a second letter, management urged Stratasys shareholders to support the bid to buy Desktop Metal, saying it provides a superior vision for the future of the company.
Stratasys CEO Yoav Zeif detailed reasons why he thinks the additive manufacturing merger craze hit the industry this year and where the technology is heading in a recent, lengthy interview with IndustryWeek editors. In the first part of that interview, he talked about his vision for the potential merger with Desktop Metal. In Part 2, he spoke about how additive manufacturing technologies can scale to better meets the needs of manufacturers.
A third installment from the interview should run soon, looking at how additive technologies are evolving in manufacturing.
