And to hell with their fiduciary responsibility to the shareholders?
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The deal is not dead nor dying. Dave & his men will ensure the deal is approved at any cost. It's a matter of ego now.
Dave needs to go. Halliburton will never be the company it once was.
This is what happens when you put an accountant in charge of a oil services company.
The $3B penalty is going to be the best deal we get this year. The company is never going to be the same again.Where did it all go wrong? Baker was our Trojan horse. Trying to become the biggest did no more than make us weaker. Hope those responsible are the first to go.
@eks - Hmmmm. Will be interesting to watch, for sure. But, HAL stock is down, around 50% from it's high,... BHI is doing better. And, let us not forget, THEY will receive a nice bonus for HAL management's hubris. You think the sheer arrogance, ineptness, and stupidity of trying a deal like this, in a downturn like this, is lost on the customer base? Another case of "strong horse" vs "weak horse".
If there ever was a time when cost saving or cost synergies were needed it's now. Both companies will do whatever needs to be done no matter how much it hurts to Merge. Sure, it hasn't gone as planned but the industry is being decimated & M&A are ripe. My guess is that the government (EU/DOJ) will give this deal a pity approval. Perhaps seeing big red in dire straits is the one thing that would make them feel ok about it. After all, the mass amounts of divestment will create a viable 3rd option. The real question is, who if anyone will have the stones to buy into this industry with such a grim 2-3 years ahead????????
Getting out now would be best even with penalty. Accepting crazy divestures just to get back to square one is worst case.
Remember Halliburton, is despised by govt. don't let legal framework fool you into thinking human/political feelings are not a factor.
It's crippled both company's. The upper echelon in Halliburton is still betting on a losing horse.
Need to face it. And move on to try and save Halliburton. Baker may not make it. Will laying off 3/4 of your work force. Be the best way? At some date in the future Halliburton is going to need experienced field personal.