ELON Musk launched a bid to become the sole owner of Twitter and cash out shareholders at a price that comes with a wink.
The hostile takeover attempt has split the Twitterverse in two.
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In the last 10 days, Musk has gone from buying about 10% of Twitter, to accepting and then rejecting a board seat, to getting sued by the shareholders and, now, is attempting to buy the whole darn platform.
It’s been a whirlwind for fans and haters alike.
In the event Musk were to buy Twitter and take the company private, he would have to cash out every shareholder at a price agreed upon by the board.
Amidst the insanity, the billionaire extraordinaire buried unmistakable Muskian flare to his bid.
Regulatory filings show that Musk has pitched the board on a buyout of $54.20 a share – Reuters noted that this is a “38% premium” on the price of the stock on the last day of trading before Musk jumped in at 10% ownership.
Each shareholder would stand to make a bit more than $20 on each share they own – which represents a fortune for management companies with millions of shares.
But there’s meaning behind the financial madness – at least in Musk’s view.
“The price offer is deliberate: $54.20/share. The 4.20 after the 5 is the Musk touch,” Neil Campling, head of TMT research at Mirabaud Equity Research, told The Sun. “4/20 is also known as Cannabis day in the US.”
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The richest man is tapping into a niched corner of internet humor during a hostile takeover of one of the most powerful social media companies ever created – it’s surreal.
Folks without stock portfolios are reading the buzz around Musk’s takeover bid and might be seeing an opportunity to dip into investing.
“Even those who don’t follow [Musk] too closely may be tempted to invest in Twitter, without fully realising the potential risks of doing so,” Zoe Stabler, an investments writer for the personal financing brand Finder, told The Sun.
“Our recent research found that half of investors in the UK (51%) are using social media to help inform them when deciding what to invest in,” she said – and social media is aflame with Twitter investment takes.
Dave Portnoy, the founder of face of Barstool Sports but not a financial advisor, told his followers “if you think Elon Musk is eventually going to get control of Twitter, you should buy the stock right now.”
Portnoy ultimately said he would not be buying – but there are Musk disciples taking positions.
“[Musk] has an army of devoted fans who follow his every move and will be piling into Twitter now,” Stabler said.
Current Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal is stuck between a rock and buzzsaw – he’s obligated to make the board money, but accepting Musk’s offer would come at the expense of the company itself.
Campling told The Sun he thinks Agrawal could soon be “tapping up his LinkedIn connections for a job.”
Confusion and speculation are spreading like wildfire – even the official Twitter account has changed its bio to “What’s happening?!”
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