Agfa-Gevaert chief financial officer denies rumours of Philips bid

Agfa-Gevaert chief financial officer Kris Hoornaert has been forced to deny rumours that the company has received an offer from Dutch electronics company Philips.Hoornaert spoke out yesterday after Agfa's European share price leapt 39 per cent to €5.65 ($AU9.25), following rumours that Philips might make a €9 per share offer for the Belgian company.

"Agfa-Gevaert does not know of any acquisition proposal. We are very shocked. We have not received anything in the form of a communication or piece of news," said Hoornaert.

Shares fell somewhat following Hoornaert's statement, but still closed up 24.5 per cent at €5.06.

The news follows Agfa's appointment, in April, of German-based investment bank Lazard to conduct a strategic review of its operations, after a planned demerger of the company's three division – Graphics, Healthcare and Materials – fell through.

Agfa blamed the demerger's indefinite postponement on disappointing results, which also spurred  a massive drop in its share price over the past 12 months – down 77 per cent from a high of €19.10 to a low of €4.38.


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Source: PrintWeek