U.S. engineering and industrial software company Emerson Electric Co. on Tuesday disclosed a nearly $7 billion offer for National Instruments Corp., which it has been trying to buy unsuccessfully for several months.
The software firm’s all-cash bid of $53 per share, which was first submitted to NI on Nov. 3, represents a premium of about 13 percent to NI’s close on Friday. Shares of NI hit a record high of $54.69 in early morning trade on Tuesday, while Emerson fell 5 percent.
Reuters was first to report on Jan. 13 Emerson’s acquisition interest in NI, after the latter announced a strategic review and adopted a so-called “poison pill”….