Layoffs Expected After International Rectifier Acquisition

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El Segundo semiconductor company International Rectifier Corp. announced Wednesday it will be acquired by a German chip maker for $40 per share in a $3 billion all-cash deal. Layoffs are expected.

The acquisition will provide the buyer, Infineon Technologies, in Neubiberg, Germany, with a large producer of power-management chips that complements its products, while expanding the company’s presence in the United States. Infineon will pay a premium of more than $13 per share over International Rectifier’s price before the announcement, when the company was trading in the $26 range.

Bloomberg News said the German company expects to cut jobs at International Rectifier, which has administrative costs that are 4 percent higher than Infineon’s. There’s also scope to manufacture some International Rectifier products at Infineon’s existing facilities, a German executive at Infineon was quoted as saying.

International Rectifier makes chips that help manage power flow in devices including satellites, cars, lighting systems and aircraft.

The deal is expected to close late this year or early next year, subject to regulatory approval.

The purchase was announced when the company reported earnings. International Rectifier reported fourth-quarter net income of $12.9 million (18 cents a share), compared with a net loss of 6.1 million (9 cents a share) from the same period a year earlier. Revenue rose 11 percent to $297.6 million. Net income fell short of analysts’ expectations of 24 cents a share.

Shares of International Rectifier rose 42 percent to $13 on Wednesday to close at $39.

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