Oracle ups PeopleSoft ante to US$9.4 billion

Oracle has raised the stakes on its bid to buy PeopleSoft to US$26 per share, or about US$9.4 billion.

In a statement issued early morning, 4 February US time, Oracle said the new offer represents an 18.8 percent premium over PeopleSoft's closing price of US$21.89 per share on Tuesday. Oracle had been offering US$19.50 per share, or US$7.3 billion, in an acquisition attempt announced last June -- a move PeopleSoft has fought bitterly.

Oracle's latest offer faces anti-trust approval from the US Department of Justice before March 12. Oracle also extended its tender offer until midnight March 12. It had been set to expire this Friday, February 6.

'We believe this acquisition is pro-competitive, will benefit the customers of both companies and will make Oracle an even more profitable company,' Oracle CEO Larry Ellison said in a statement.

Oracle has upped its bids several times since June, but this time the company seemed to close the doors to continued hikes.

'This is our final price,' Oracle chairman and CFO Jeff Henley said in a statement. 'We strongly recommend that PeopleSoft stockholders make their views known by tendering their shares, approving our proposal to increase the size of the board to nine members and voting to elect five independent directors.'

Last week, PeopleSoft said it was moving its annual meeting to March 25, about two months earlier than usual. Oracle is trying to name its own slate of five directors to PeopleSoft's board.