COLUMBIA, Md. (AFX) - Essex Corp. said Friday military contractor Northrop Grumman Corp. will withdraw and refile its bid to buy the provider of signal, image and information processing for U.S. intelligence and defense customers.
Essex said it was informed by Northrop Grumman Space & Mission Systems Corp. that it will refile its pre-merger notification to provide additional time for federal antitrust authorities to review the proposed sale.
The Los Angeles-based contractor said in November it planned to buy Essex for $24 per share, or about $580 million in cash, including assumed debt.
Essex expects the deal to close in the first quarter of 2007 as planned.
A representative from Northrop Grumman could not immediately be reached for comment.
Shares of Northrop dropped 65 cents to $67.70 on the New York Stock Exchange, while shares of Essex closed unchanged at $23.91 on the Nasdaq.
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