Investor says Microsoft's Yahoo offer high enough
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Money Manager Bob Olstein, who owns about one million shares of Microsoft Corp, is urging the company to resist pressure to raise its $31 dollar per share offer for Yahoo Inc and to make it an all-cash deal.
"Under no circumstances should you raise your price," Olstein said in a letter to Microsoft chief financial officer Christopher Liddell, dated February 12 and made public on Wednesday.
"We believe your recent offer for Yahoo is materially above Yahoo's value as an independent company," Olstein said. The Microsoft offer is valued at about $42 billion.
Olstein, known as a careful money manager who pays close attention to accounting issues, calculated that an all-stock deal would dilute Microsoft's earnings by 19 cents per share. An all-cash deal would dilute Microsoft earnings by a more modest 7 cents per share, he said.
Yahoo has already rejected the offer, saying it does not reflect the value of the company.
(Reporting by Cal Mankowski, editing by Richard Chang)
