Fujifilm Nears Deal With Xerox

By Dana Mattioli, Dana Cimilluca and David Benoit 

Xerox Corp. is nearing a deal with Japan's Fujifilm Holdings Corp. that would mark the end of the independence of the stalwart of 20th-century American industry.

The deal would combine Xerox with a joint venture the company has with Fujifilm, and the U.S. company's shareholders would own just under half of the resulting entity, according to people familiar with the matter. As part of the deal, to be announced as soon as Wednesday, Xerox shareholders would get an implied premium for their stock and cash, one of the people said.

Xerox shares would continue to trade following the transaction, should it be completed. As of Tuesday, Xerox had a market value of $8.3 billion.

The talks could still fall apart or the terms could change.

Earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal reported that Fujifilm and Xerox were discussing an array of possible alternatives that may or may not have included a change of control of Norwalk, Conn.-based Xerox.

The expected deal caps a yearslong decline at Xerox, which has been beset by a decrease in office printing and copying as more functions move online -- and more recently by a campaign by activist shareholders. It would put control of the company in the hands of a competitor that has successfully diversified away from printing and copying and another of its signature businesses, film photography.

By combining, the companies believe they can cut costs to combat declining demand, a task that could be made easier by the fact that they already know each other from their longtime joint venture. It is that venture, Fuji Xerox, that would be combined with Xerox in the deal.

Write to Dana Mattioli at [e-mail], Dana Cimilluca at [e-mail] and David Benoit at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 30, 2018 19:10 ET (00:10 GMT)

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