Benzinga's M&A Chatter for Friday May 4, 2012

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Friday May 4, 2012: Westlake Chemical Withdraws Proposal To Acquire Georgia Gulf The Withdrawal:
Westlake Chemical Corporation WLK announced Friday that following acquisition discussions with Georgia Gulf's management under the terms of a confidentiality agreement, it notified Georgia Gulf that Westlake has withdrawn its proposal to acquire all of the outstanding shares of common stock of Georgia Gulf Corporation GGC and does not intend to continue to pursue a transaction with Georgia Gulf. The company also stated that it plans to liquidate its holdings of Georgia Gulf common stock as market conditions permit. Albert Chao, President & CEO of Westlake, stated, "We are disappointed in this result but we continue to work on our previously announced important strategic initiatives as well as to look for other opportunities to grow our business. We believe that we are well-positioned for future success." Georgia Gulf issued the following statement regarding Westlake Chemical Corporation's announcement that it has withdrawn its previously disclosed unsolicited proposal to acquire Georgia Gulf: “Georgia Gulf remains focused on executing the Company's strategy and is confident that we are well positioned to create significant value for our stockholders,” said Paul Carrico, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Georgia Gulf's significant ability to leverage our access to low-cost U.S. shale gas and to benefit from continuing growth in global demand and the recovery of the U.S. housing market, combined with our highly integrated asset base and access to key export markets, places Georgia Gulf in an ideal position for the future. We are confident in our business plan, future prospects and ability to generate significant value for the benefit of our stakeholders. Georgia Gulf closed at $34.26 Friday, but closed the after-hours session at $30.65. GeoEye Proposes Acquisition Of DigitalGlobe The Offer:
GeoEye GEOY announced Friday that it is proposing to acquire DigitalGlobe, Inc. DGI. The proposed transaction would give DigitalGlobe shareholders $17.00 per share in total consideration, payable $8.50 per share in cash and $8.50 in GeoEye stock, or 0.3537 shares of GeoEye stock for each share of DigitalGlobe stock. This price represents a 26% premium to DigitalGlobe's closing share price on May 3, 2012. The proposal is structured to provide DigitalGlobe shareholders with the opportunity to participate in the dynamic future growth of the combined company. DigitalGlobe confirmed that it has received the unsolicited proposal from GeoEye. DigitalGlobe's Board of Directors, consistent with its fiduciary duties and in consultation with its independent financial and legal advisors, will carefully review and consider the proposal and pursue the course of action that is in the best interests of DigitalGlobe and its stockholders. A Geoeye spokesperson told Benzinga their $17 offer is full and fair and the company would not speculate on alternate scenarios, should DigitalGlobe not accept the offer. DigitalGlobe closed at $16.44 Friday, a 21.60% gain on almost 8 times the average daily volume. Hearing Takeover Chatter in Allscripts Healthcare Solutions The Rumor:
Allscripts Healthcare Solutions MDRX is rumored to be a takeover target, according to dealReporter. Allscripts shares spiked higher on the report. A spokesperson for Allscripts told Benzinga there was no news to account for the spike and the company would not comment on the takeover rumor. Allscripts announced an increase to its share buyback program on April 30. Call volume was at 467% of average on that day, with a block trade of 2,053 September 13 contracts. Allscripts Healthcare Solutions closed at 10.57 on Friday, a loss of 0.38% on 2.6 times the average daily volume.