Elon Musk makes $43B unsolicited bid to take Twitter private • Hacker News Board

Re: Elon Musk makes $43B unsolicited bid to take Twitter private

#671

Post by asd88 » Thu, Apr 14, 2022, 4:49 PM UTC

memish wrote: post #577

gunapologist99 wrote: post #521

So Twitter was at $70 per share a year ago. So what? Jack Dorsey was CEO a year ago, too. The share price was $33 less than a month ago. But, despite an absolutely incredible roller-coaster news cycle, things have been definitely trending down at Twitter ($33/share last month), which was reflected in its share price. The current executive team (and Dorsey) had wasted time focusing on things that didn't matter instead…

Would Elon reinstate Jack to set up a Steve Jobs style comeback story?

Jack already had his Steve Jobs comeback moment in 2015.

Re: Elon Musk makes $43B unsolicited bid to take Twitter private

#672

Post by ketzo » Thu, Apr 14, 2022, 4:49 PM UTC

williamsmj wrote: post #603

RustyConsul wrote: post #510

> "if my offer is rejected i will reconsider my ownership in twitter." Thats an immense amount of selling pressure on the stock... This is a threat. He's negotiating with a gun to their head.

This is standard operating procedure for takeovers, but I think you're massively overestimating the amount of pressure someone selling 9% of the company places on the stock price. Someone buying 9% (with an expecation that they would buy more) moved the stock $10. The same person selling 9% stock (with no possibility that can sell more) is unlikely to move the stock more than that.

Okay, but it's Elon Musk selling 9% of a company's stock.

The dude makes stocks move when he tweets memes. I think it's fair to say he's got some... extra pull.

Re: Elon Musk makes $43B unsolicited bid to take Twitter private

#673

Post by jslaby » Thu, Apr 14, 2022, 4:50 PM UTC

RustyConsul wrote: post #510

> "if my offer is rejected i will reconsider my ownership in twitter." Thats an immense amount of selling pressure on the stock... This is a threat. He's negotiating with a gun to their head.

The price is currently $46 and considering the stock market is down as a whole, the $54 price will easily be eclipsed in the near future imo. Granted Musk will sell his stock and that price will go down, but I would balk at this offer if I had any skin in the game.

Re: Elon Musk makes $43B unsolicited bid to take Twitter private

#674

Post by victor106 » Thu, Apr 14, 2022, 4:50 PM UTC

no-dr-onboard wrote: post #561

> As an all-cash offer, this generates for the shareholders a substantial return with NO RISK, and so the board has a serious legal obligation to carefully review this offer and make a decision. What a gut check. I'm sure this is an obvious comment by now, but seeing the board's response to turning down something like this is going to be an olympic level display of mental gymnastics. Exciting times.

Jim Cramer thinks the board has no choice but to reject.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/04/14/cramer-twitters-board-has-no...

Re: Elon Musk makes $43B unsolicited bid to take Twitter private

#675

Post by mrleinad » Thu, Apr 14, 2022, 4:50 PM UTC

jollybean wrote: post #645

"Boards have a fiduciary duty to the shareholders." Xi and the CCP/Chinese Government make a bid to buy Google, for a 20% premium. They also bid to buy Twitter, Facebook and Microsoft. All for 20% premium. Should shareholders do 'the right thing' and sell? Assuming you're not a Twitter shareholder why do you care about investors interests? Why don't you care about your interests ? Why do plebes constantly argue again…

Moderation makes sense when somebody is hijacking your platform and ruining the experience for everyone else.

How does someone ruin anything for anyone on twitter, when you can just unfollow/block on your own, and follow whomever you want?

Seems to me that "moderation" these days is the same as "censorship". The same way the EU decided that their citizens cannot think for themselves and need to be protected from Russian lies like small children.

I'd very much like Elon to take over Twitter, since he has clearly expressed he doesn't believe in pre-emptively censoring anyone just because their views are not aligned.

Re: Elon Musk makes $43B unsolicited bid to take Twitter private

#676

Post by wonderwonder » Thu, Apr 14, 2022, 4:53 PM UTC

memish wrote: post #577

gunapologist99 wrote: post #521

So Twitter was at $70 per share a year ago. So what? Jack Dorsey was CEO a year ago, too. The share price was $33 less than a month ago. But, despite an absolutely incredible roller-coaster news cycle, things have been definitely trending down at Twitter ($33/share last month), which was reflected in its share price. The current executive team (and Dorsey) had wasted time focusing on things that didn't matter instead…

Would Elon reinstate Jack to set up a Steve Jobs style comeback story?

Jack left because he was done, he resigned. He is now pretty much 100% BTC and decentralization.

Re: Elon Musk makes $43B unsolicited bid to take Twitter private

#677

Post by mgfist » Thu, Apr 14, 2022, 4:53 PM UTC

babypuncher wrote: post #662

gunapologist99 wrote: post #521

So Twitter was at $70 per share a year ago. So what? Jack Dorsey was CEO a year ago, too. The share price was $33 less than a month ago. But, despite an absolutely incredible roller-coaster news cycle, things have been definitely trending down at Twitter ($33/share last month), which was reflected in its share price. The current executive team (and Dorsey) had wasted time focusing on things that didn't matter instead…

> Boards have a fiduciary duty to the shareholders. As an all-cash offer, this generates for the shareholders a substantial return with NO RISK, and so the board has a serious legal obligation to carefully review this offer and make a decision. The fact that their primary concern has to be for their shareholders and not whether the sale will be good at all for the rest of humanity is a huge problem in my eyes.

Shareholders can vote no. It's why having a majority shareholder is so powerful.

But also it's the job of the regulatory body to be the check for society

Re: Elon Musk makes $43B unsolicited bid to take Twitter private

#678

Post by mgfist » Thu, Apr 14, 2022, 4:55 PM UTC

alecco wrote: post #640

gunapologist99 wrote: post #521

So Twitter was at $70 per share a year ago. So what? Jack Dorsey was CEO a year ago, too. The share price was $33 less than a month ago. But, despite an absolutely incredible roller-coaster news cycle, things have been definitely trending down at Twitter ($33/share last month), which was reflected in its share price. The current executive team (and Dorsey) had wasted time focusing on things that didn't matter instead…

And to note, Musk is going against the trend. Ark, the tech permabull, reduced its Twitter position. Cathie Wood just said she started selling after @jack stepped down as CEO. Interesting times.

I don't think he is. He stated that he doesn't see a future for Twitter with current management.

Re: Elon Musk makes $43B unsolicited bid to take Twitter private

#679

Post by linguistbreaker » Thu, Apr 14, 2022, 4:55 PM UTC

BeKindAndLearn wrote: post #343

paganel wrote: post #50

I personally think this is excellent, in the great scheme of things, maybe this will open a real discussion about the real oligarchic nature of the US political and societal life at the top. I mean, with tech titan (and second wealthiest man on the planet) Bezos owning the WaPo, the moment the tech titan (and the wealthiest man on the planet) Musk will put his hands on Twitter hopefully will also be the moment of som…

Oligarchs controlling every form of my mass communication can only make things worse, though.

A media company having a legal obligation to maximize profits seems at least as bad for journalism as private ownership as there's zero room for any sort of integrity.

Re: Elon Musk makes $43B unsolicited bid to take Twitter private

#680

Post by gpm » Thu, Apr 14, 2022, 4:55 PM UTC

jslaby wrote: post #673

RustyConsul wrote: post #510

> "if my offer is rejected i will reconsider my ownership in twitter." Thats an immense amount of selling pressure on the stock... This is a threat. He's negotiating with a gun to their head.

The price is currently $46 and considering the stock market is down as a whole, the $54 price will easily be eclipsed in the near future imo. Granted Musk will sell his stock and that price will go down, but I would balk at this offer if I had any skin in the game.

If you're basing this on the stock market as a whole being down, surely you'd make more money by selling to Elon at $54 while it's still down, and re-investing your money in other stocks - letting you get the upside twice, once from Elon and once from the stock market going up.