News Update: Avnet Announced It Has Entered Into An Agreement To Acquire Bell Microproducts

Описание: 3/29/2010- Avnet Inc. (NYSE:AVT) announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Bell Microproducts Inc. (NASDAQ:BELM) in an all cash merger for $7 per share, which values the deal at about $594 million.

The acquisition has been approved by the board of directors at both companies and is subject to the approval of Bell's shareholders as well as customary regulatory approvals.

The transaction is expected to close within 60 to 120 days.

Avnet's Chairman and CEO Roy Vallee said, "We are very excited about the opportunity to build additional scale and scope in storage and computing solutions as well as increase our presence in the fast-growing Latin America market. Bell's position in datacenter products and embedded systems complements Avnet's current strategies and creates opportunities for cross selling. Bell's position as one of the leaders in hard disk drive distribution substantially increases Avnet's exposure to this product segment which is currently focused on embedded computing. In support of our focus on value-added solutions distribution in North America, we intend to explore strategic alternatives for the single tier reseller business. The combination of Bell's strong customer/supplier relationships and talented employees, coupled with our value based management culture and discipline, should allow us to achieve our stated return on capital goals on this transaction following the completion of the integration."