PeopleSoft: J.D. Edwards Buy Has Cleared Final Antitrust Hurdle

The waiting period required by the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, intended to help guard against antitrust violations, is over sooner than expected, PeopleSoft said in a statement Monday. The deal is now slated to be completed by midnight Thursday, just hours after PeopleSoft is slated to release its financial results for the current quarter.

"The Department of Justice's decision to grant early termination is great news," said Craig Conway, president and CEO of PeopleSoft, Pleasanton, Calif., in the statement. "This is a very important milestone and clears the way for the J.D Edwards acquisition to be completed."

Moments after PeopleSoft said it had been cleared to finalize the transaction, Oracle released a statement of its own.

The database giant, which announced on June 9 that it intends to try to acquire PeopleSoft in a hostile takeover, said Monday that it has extended to Aug. 15 its previously announced tender offer for all of PeopleSoft's common stock.

A spokesman for Redwood Shores, Calif.-based Oracle said the company remains "fully committed to acquiring PeopleSoft, with or without J.D. Edwards."

Oracle's offer had been set to expire at midnight on Friday, July 18. At the close of business on July 11, some 43,773,940 shares had been tendered in and not withdrawn from the offer.

PeopleSoft's shares were trading Monday afternoon at $17.79, while Oracle's were at $12.93 and J.D. Edwards' were at $14.66.