Benzinga's M&A Chatter for Wednesday May 16, 2012

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Wednesday May 16, 2012: Facebook Could Pay as Much as $30 Per Share for Research in Motion The Rumor:
Just 2 days before its IPO, Facebook FB is rumored to have an interest in acquiring Research in Motion RIMM, this according to the UK's Daily Mail. The report said the social media giant might pay as much as $30 per share to get into the smartphone business. Research in Motion ended the day Wednesday just .02 above its 52-week low at $11.02 on lower than average volume. Pearson VUE Acquires Certiport The Deal:
Pearson VUE, the computer-based testing arm of Pearson PSO, announced Wednesday the acquisition of Certiport, a leading provider of performance-based certification exams and practice test solutions for academic institutions, workforce and corporate technology markets. By joining forces with Certiport, Pearson VUE is furthering its commitment to offering the most robust, end-to-end professional learning and assessment solutions across the globe. Pearson closed at $18.35 on Wednesday, a loss of 0.86% on slightly lower than average volume. CAE acquires Oxford Aviation Academy for C$314M The Deal:
CAE CAE has acquired Oxford Aviation Academy, an industry-leading provider of aviation training and crew sourcing services for C$314 million. This acquisition strengthens CAE's leadership and global reach in civil aviation training by increasing its training centre footprint, growing its Ab-Initio flight training network and extending its portfolio by adding OAA's Parc Aviation, the global leader in pilot and maintenance crew sourcing for airlines and leasing companies. CAE closed at $9.87 on Wednesday, a loss of 0.90% on 1.5 times the average daily volume. Archipelago Learning Shareholders Approve Merger Agreement with PLATO Learning The Approval:
Archipelago Learning ARCL announced Wednesday that its shareholders, at a special meeting held on May 16, 2012, approved the proposal to adopt the previously announced merger agreement, dated March 3, 2012, providing for the acquisition of Archipelago Learning by PLATO Learning. At the special meeting of shareholders, there were 22,499,664 shares voted by proxy or in person, representing 85.40% of Archipelago Learning's total outstanding shares as of the record date, April 11, 2012. With regards to the vote to approve the proposal to adopt the merger agreement, 22,499,664 shares were cast, representing 85.40% of the total outstanding shares of common stock of Archipelago Learning. 22,497,746 shares voted in favor of the proposal to adopt the merger agreement, representing 85.39% of the total outstanding shares and 99.99% of the total shares voted of Archipelago Learning. Archipelago Learning closed at $11.08 on Wednesday, about flat for the day on half the average daily volume. Boyd Gaming To Acquire Peninsula Gaming For $1.45 Billion The Deal:
Boyd Gaming Corporation BYD announced Wednesday that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Peninsula Gaming, for total consideration of $1.45 billion. The purchase price represents an EBITDA multiple of 7.0 times based on the trailing 12-month EBITDA of $109 million for Peninsula's Iowa and Louisiana properties, an annualized run-rate for Kansas Star based on its first-quarter 2012 EBITDA of $26.8 million, and corporate expense of $10 million. Subject to the satisfaction of various closing conditions and receipt of required regulatory approvals, Boyd Gaming expects the transaction to close by the end of 2012. Boyd Gaming closed at $6.98 on Wednesday, a loss of 0.14% for the day on lower than average volume. Westell Announces Acquisition of ANTONE Wireless The Deal:
Westell Technologies WSTL announced Wednesday that it has acquired the assets and business of ANTONE Wireless Corporation. “We are excited to take this step forward in implementing Westell's wireless strategy,” said Rick Gilbert, Westell's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “ANTONE brings to us outstanding engineering capabilities, valuable expertise with wireless markets, and an established line of best-in-class Tower-Mounted Amplifiers and related products that are currently being deployed to enhance 4G/LTE wireless broadband performance." Westell Technologies closed at $2.11 on Wednesday, a loss of 0.94% for the day on half the average daily volume.