Haldex Favors ZF Acquisition Offer

The board of directors of Sweden’s Haldex AB is recommending that shareholders approve a 4.4 billion krona ($520 million) cash offer announced today by ZF Friedrichshafen AG over the 4.2 billion krona ($490 million) bid made three weeks ago by SAF-Holland GmbH.

Hailing the ZF deal as "clearly superior" to SAF-Holland’s offer, Haldex notes the cash offer is more than a 34% premium over the company’s three-month average stock price. The stockholder acceptance period will run through the end of September.

If the purchase is successful, ZF promises to expand Haldex’s technical and global capabilities, with a focus on braking and air suspension systems for commercial vehicles. Haldex is best known for supplying high-performance all-wheel-drive, braking and suspension systems to Volvo.