Corporate Express reaction to Staples' filing announcement

Following the increased offer from Staples, CE issued this reaction. The reaction can be regarded as positive, since CE management indicates that it is now ready to talk, or in their words is "available to engage in a dialogue with Staples and if appropriate will meet with Staples management to allow them to elaborate on the revised proposal." The CEO of CE, Mr. Ventress is quoted as saying: "We are willing to have discussions with Staples and clearly this still applies also on the basis of today’s announcement.”

Shares of CE are currently trading at EUR 8.10, which is 6.5% above yesterday's closing. Investors are actively agreeing with CE that the offer is too low, and should be further increased. This may give Mr. Ventress some encouragement in his forthcoming discussions with Staples.

The best scenario would obviously be if Staples and CE come to an agreement while the offer memorandum is under review by the AFM. This will allow Staples to make the formal offer to the public with a revised and increased final price, that has been agreed with CE management. This would also mean that both companies can start working on the integration plan in order to capture all the possible synergies from this acquisition.