“(Reuters) – Blackstone Group LP has ended its pursuit of Dell Inc, three people familiar with the matter said on Thursday, easing the way for founder Michael Dell and his private equity partnerSilver Lake to go ahead with a $24.4 billion deal to acquire the world’s No. 3 PC maker.
New York-based Blackstone pulled out just a month after it first launched a challenge to the billionaire’s attempt to take private the PC maker he founded.
Blackstone withdrew citing an unprecedented 14 percent drop in industry PC sales in the first quarter of 2013 and a lower earnings forecast by the Dell’s management, which saw operating income dropping from $3.7 billion to $3 billion in the current fiscal year, one of the sources said.
Blackstone and activist investor Carl Icahn, who has taken a significant stake in the company and opposes Michael Dell’s buyout, had made preliminary offers to the company challenging the deal with Silver Lake.
Icahn’s chances of a successful rival offer are viewed by analysts and investors as slimmer than Blackstone’s, yet the deal with Silver Lake still faces significant opposition from some Dell shareholders, including Southeastern Asset Management, the activist investor that owns 8.4 percent of the company.
Dell, Blackstone and Silver Lake declined to comment. Icahn could not immediately be reached for comment…”
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