On the heels of this mornings report that Deutsche Telekom was watching the real-time voting results from MetroPCS shareholders comes a new report via the Wall Street Journal. The Journal is reporting that “people familiar with the after” have told the publication Deutsche Telekom is reviewing a sweeter bid for MetroPCS. The improved terms of a new deal could be announced as early as Wednesday according to one of the Journal’s sources.
The new terms would likely include a reduction in New Co debt, one of the biggest roadblocks for MetroPCS shareholders who had shown opposition to the deal. Other details surrounding any improved offer weren’t immediately available, as sources could only say that Senior Deutsche Telekom officials are reviewing the offer. Should Deutsche Telekom show an improved offer, the meeting would likely be delayed an extra two weeks to allow time for shareholders to review and if necessary, change their votes.
With opponents of the deal getting a huge bump from two of the three major proxy advisory firms Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis urging a vote against the deal, Deutsche Telekom finds itself in a bit of a quandary. The advice of proxy advisory firms is simply an overall look at the structure of the deal and isn’t binding, but can be influential, especially to undecided voters.
Will Deutsche Telekom improve its offer? We’ll find out soon enough.