Qualcomm on Monday officially rejected rival Broadcom's $103 billion takeover bid, saying the offer "dramatically" undervalued the U.S. company.
"It is the Board's unanimous belief that Broadcom's proposal significantly undervalues Qualcomm relative to the company's leadership position in mobile technology and our future growth prospects," said Paul Jacobs, Executive Chairman and Chairman of the Board of Qualcomm Incorporated.
"No company is better positioned in mobile, IoT, automotive, edge computing and networking within the semiconductor industry. We are confident in our ability to create significant additional value for our stockholders as we continue our growth in these attractive segments and lead the transition to 5G," said Steve Mollenkopf, Chief Executive Officer of Qualcomm Incorporated.
"After a comprehensive review, conducted in consultation with our financial and legal advisors, the board has concluded that Broadcom's proposal dramatically undervalues Qualcomm and comes with significant regulatory uncertainty. We are highly confident that the strategy Steve and his team are executing on provides far superior value to Qualcomm shareholders than the proposed offer," said Tom Horton, Presiding Director for Qualcomm Incorporated.
Broadcom responded by saying it is remaining committed to pursuing its acquisition of Qualcomm
Hock Tan, President and Chief Executive Officer of Broadcom, stated, "This transaction will create a strong, global company with an impressive portfolio of industry-leading technologies and products, and we have received positive feedback from key customers about this combination. We continue to believe our proposal represents the most attractive, value-enhancing alternative available to Qualcomm stockholders and we are encouraged by their reaction. Many have expressed to us their desire that Qualcomm meet with us to discuss our proposal. It remains our strong preference to engage cooperatively with Qualcomm's Board of Directors and management team."
Broadcom made its unsolicited bid last week in its efforts to become the dominant supplier of chips used in the 1.5 billion or so smartphones expected to be sold around the world this year.