Engineering design firm AECOM Technology Corp on Sunday said it would pay about $6 billion in cash and stock to acquire URS Corp, an engineering and construction services company, to create a combined company with about $19 billion in annual sales and more than 95,000 employees.AECOM in a news release said it would pay $56.31 a share in cash and stock for URS. Terms of the deal were unanimously approved by both of the California-based companies, and the deal is expected to close in October, AECOM said.URS stockholders will receive $33 in cash and 0.734 share of AECOM common stock for each URS share. The price represents a premium of 19 percent over the trailing 30-day average closing price of URS shares and an 8 percent premium over URS' closing share price on Friday of $52.02.Reuters reported on Friday that URS had held talks with industry rivals and takeover firms about a potential sale. It noted that URS, which has been under pressure from activist investor Jana Partners to enhance shareholder value, had hired bankers to contact possible buyers and gauge their interest in the past few months, according to people familiar with the efforts.
AECOM Technology Corporation (AECOM) is a provider of professional technical and management support services for commercial and government clients around the world. Shares of ACM traded higher by 0.32% or $0.1/share to $31.76. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $27.35 and as high as $35.24. On average, 619061 shares of ACM exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 641158.
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