Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover circus would always offer thrills and spills. But if Friday’s chaotic sequence of events is anything to go by, most market spectators will not leave their seats soon.
Tesla’s chief executive said in a tweet early Friday morning that he was putting his $44bn bid for Twitter “temporarily on hold”. The news triggered a 20 per cent tumble in the stock in pre-market trading. Two hours later, Musk put out another tweet, saying he was “still committed to acquisition.” Cue both chortles and exclamations from traders.
The share price had a wild ride, down only 8 per cent by Friday morning trading. But it languishes 24 per cent below Musk’s $54.20-a-share take-private bid. One can only speculate on Musk’s intentions, including a desire to renegotiate the offer price.