Yahoo Interested In a Microsoft Buyout, But Microsoft Isn't

Linux Blog writes "The Google-Yahoo advertising deal has been rejected by the Department of Justice, and Google has pulled the plug on a search-ad partnership with Yahoo that would have given Yahoo major new revenue, but that raised antitrust concerns. Now, Yahoo has said the 'For Sale' sign is still on its front lawn and that Microsoft should buy the company. The internet portal's co-founder and CEO Jerry Yang made this comment despite the fact Yahoo rejected a $33 a share offer from Microsoft back in May. What a huge loss for the share holders. Microsoft was quick to respond that their buyout efforts were a thing of the past, but left the door open to a search partnership."

Re:Wait a sec

[gurps_npc]

Not as bad as you made it look. The MS offer involved MS stock, and if people had taken it, they would now have about $20. Still not the best decision Yahoo ever made.

Re:Wait a sec

[Anonymous Coward]

$14? They're at $12.20 at the time of this posting, and they hit sub-$12 in the last 24h (and have done so dozens of times).

Some respected business analysts said they're worth more like $7.50/share (WAY over inflated P/E ratio and such).

And now Google and MS don't even want of them anymore. They should get with AOL, it would make for the most epic FAIL ever (worst than the previous bubble burst, just by themselves)

Thanks god I don't have any YHOO stock!

I for one, welcome our new epic FAIL overlords.

Taxes

[TubeSteak]

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/yahoo-plays-catch-up-offshore-tax/story.aspx?guid=%7BB54D432E-20D4-47B3-B7E9-204593E9E00D%7D&dist=msr_2 [marketwatch.com]

Long Story Short: MS & Google both have offshore tax dodges setup, so they end up paying around 24% tax rates, while Yahoo pays around 40%. Yahoo wants to join the offshore tax dodgers, but the IRS recently decided to crack down on the practice.

This isn't in the article, but IIRC, Obama has already made it clear that he's going to close such loopholes in the tax code, which will translate to higher taxes on corporations and more revenue for the Treasury Dept. (let's not have the discussion on whether this is a good or bad thing for business and the country)

Re:Wait a sec

[Anonymous Coward]

Not as bad as you made it look. The MS offer involved MS stock, and if people had taken it, they would now have about $20. Still not the best decision Yahoo ever made.

Actually the offer was made with a mixture of cash and stock, so the net result to shareholders would have been higher than the $20 you quote based solely on MSFTs stock price.

They must be doing something right

[westlake]

For me, the underlying issue is this: Have Steve Ballmer or Bill Gates ever made any statements that indicate that they have an understanding of technology?
.

Microsoft saw a modest 2% growth in profits in its first quarter of FY2009. It held $21 billion in cash in September.

Microsoft is one of the six companies in the industrial sector with a AAA corporate credit rating from S&P - and the first industrial to make the list in ten years.

The others are Automatic Data Processing, Exxon Mobil Corporation, General Electric, Johnson & Johnson, and Pfizer.

In 1980 there were 30 industrials with AAA ratings.

In late 2008 the odds are 7 in 10 a US industrial will be rated "below investment grade" - aka "toast:"

Microsoft joins select industrial club with S&P's AAA rating [bjp.com]

Re:Apple should buy Yahoo

[A12m0v]

Apple already got MobileMe and Eric Schimdt is on its board of directors.