Xerox begins tender offer for all of HP’s shares

NORWALK, Connecticut and PALO ALTO, California — Xerox Holdings Corp. (NYSE: XRX) has officially begun its $33.5 billion hostile takeover of HP Inc. (NYSE: HPQ) by asking HP shareholders to cede their stock in a company with deep ties to Northern Colorado’s technology sector.

Connecticut-based Xerox began its tender offer to HP shareholders to trade their stock at $24 per share in a combination of cash and Xerox stock. Xerox also plans to offer a brand new slate of directors for HP’s board during its next annual meeting this spring in a concurrent takeover effort.

In a statement to investors, HP said it has 10 business days to review the offer and make a recommendation to its shareholders. However, it has repeatedly called Xerox’s offer unsolicited and a bad move for shareholders due to the large amount of debt Xerox would have to take out to finance the buyout.

HP announced a “poison pill” stock issuance plan last week and said it would buy back almost half of its shares outstanding in the next two years to make a future takeover attempt far more difficult and expensive.

The Palo Alto-based HP has long been a major tech employer for the region, once employing thousands in Loveland and Greeley before slowly shrinking its footprint to just one office in Fort Collins. About 600 people work at the Fort Collins office, according to estimates from LinkedIn data.

HP Enterprise Inc. (NYSE: HPE) also has offices in Fort Collins and Boulder, but is a separate company from HP Inc. and wouldn’t be affected if Xerox succeeds in its takeover efforts.

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