General Electric Co said it will purchase oilfield services provider Lufkin Industries Inc for about $3.3 billion to expand its oil and gas business.The offer values Lufkin at $88.50 per share, representing a premium of 38 percent to the stock's Friday close. Lufkin shares rose to $87.97 in premarket trading.Lufkin, which makes artificial lift technologies and industrial equipment, has operations in the United States, Canada, Latin America, the Middle East and Europe.Artificial lift refers to the use of external means to increase the flow of liquids such as crude oil or water from a production well.
Lufkin Industries, Inc. is a global supplier of artificial lift products, technology, services and solutions, including automated control equipment and analytical products for artificial lift equipment, to the oil and gas industry. Shares of LUFK remained unchanged at $63.93. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $45.11 and as high as $80.04. On average, 508110 shares of LUFK exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 14517.
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