Communications and networking equipment vendor Ascend Communications is reportedly very close to making an offer to buy high-end computer manufacturer Stratus Computer.
Reports have been circulating during the past two weeks that a deal is in the offing between the two companies, leading to fluctuations in their respective share prices.
According to a story in the Wall Street Journal published last week, the deal is valued at $US800 million, with Ascend intending to exchange 75 per cent of each of its shares (approximately $US33.35) for each one of Stratus' 24 million shares. The Stratus board of directors gave initial approval for the acquisition late last week, the Journal said, with the Ascend board meeting last week to give the deal the final go-ahead. Rumours also continue to proliferate that Lucent Technologies will eventually acquire Ascend.
