Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings Inc (NYSE: AJRD) is trading up on Monday after L3Harris Technologies Inc (NYSE: LHX) said it will buy the rocket engine manufacturer for $4.70 billion.
What’s in it for Aerojet Rocketdyne?
The all-cash agreement translates to $58 a share and is expected to complete next year if it secures regulatory approval and meets other customary closing conditions.
L3Harris is convinced this acquisition will strengthen its position as a defense contractor and a rival to Raytheon Technologies and Lockheed Martin. In the press release, its Chief Executive – Christopher Kubasik said:
With this acquisition we will use the combined talents of more than 50,000 employees to drive continuous process improvement, enhance business operations and elevate the performance of this crucial national asset.
Other parties interested in buying this California-based company included General Electric and Textron.
Cramer reacts to the announcement
It’s noteworthy that federal regulators earlier this year had blocked Lockheed Martin from buying Aerojet for $4.40 billion on antitrust grounds.
So, it’s reasonable to speculate that the deal with L3Harris will likely face intense regulatory scrutiny as well. Reacting to the announcement, Jim Cramer said on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street”:
Good luck, L3Harris, destroying your stock, doing a deal that was already rejected. Department of Defense wants competition. L3Harris was such good company. I recommended it over and over again. And this is not what I wanted to see.
In October, L3Harris also bought “Link 16” from Viasat Inc as Invezz reported here. The defense stock is down nearly 3.0% this morning.
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