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Musk backing off Twitter board opens door to hostile takeover

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Elon Musk looks down and pauses as he talks during the press conference held at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in South Texas near Boca Chica Village on February 10, 2022.

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Billionaire Elon Musk’s reversal of his decisionTo join TwitterAccording to analysts, the Board of Directors opens up to hostile takeover and may cause additional volatility.

Musk’s refusal to join Twitter’s board signifies that his ownership of 14.9% is no longer restricted to him. Analysts believe Musk might be interested in a hostile acquisition.

“[T]His weekend changeup saves the company having to deal avec a director who tweets about board-level meetings. Don Bilson, Gordon Haskett Research Advisors’ director of research wrote Monday that this would have been unsustainable. TWTR will have to deal with a wildcard shareholder that has 9% ownership and the funds to buy the remainder 91%. We could soon see such a move, no matter how volatile Musk may be. It could happen, or we might not see it at all. TWTR’s current overhang is certainly a distraction.”

Bilson mentioned Parag Agrawal (Twitter CEO)’s declaration that Musk will not be joining the board. Agrawal warned of possible distractions ahead. CNBC spoke with Bilson on Monday, saying that company messaging seemed “sorta ominous”.

Twitter may ultimately choose to swallow the “poison pills” or an investor rights plan in order to fight hostile takeovers. However, Bilson warned that such a move could anger Musk. Perhaps it is best for Twitter to retain the arrow it has in its bow for now.

Bilson said to CNBC, “It will be very difficult to get committed to a investment thesis because it is impossible to know where the winds will flow.” Bilson said that he doesn’t believe anything is off-limits for this man.

Dan Ives, a Wedbush Securities analyst, offered similar thoughts Monday morning.

Ives stated that “this is obviously going to be an unbearable situation”, on CNBC’s “Squawk box” with Andrew Ross Sorkin.

“Instead of Musk in the board room in the corner just saying nay or agreeing on certain board candidates, I think now it really goes to the point that in the coming days I think we’ll start to see if he’s going to go more hostile, more active – that’s what the Street’s focused on,” Ives said.

Twitter shares had its best day since its IPOMusk became the public face of the company after he bought a more than 9 percent stake. When Musk joined the board, shares jumped an additional 2%. Stocks were volatile Monday, and this unpredictability may continue.

KeyBanc analyst wrote that while it is not clear what Musk’s priorities might be, they do anticipate his tweets to receive more attention which could lead volatility in share prices.

Gene Munster, Loup Ventures’ Managing Partner, said that on CNBC’s “The View,” he was not referring to Loup Ventures.Squawk BoxHe believes that “the bulk of the drama has ended.”

Munster claimed that that prediction was based on his assumption that it would have been smarter to make the immediate takeover if Musk intended to. Musk doesn’t want to take over Twitter, he said.

“Understand that free speech is very important to him. I feel he would like to see that move forward. Munster stated that Munster sees this as a huge opportunity, as large as the electrification of space travel. He has too much on his plate, and this seems to me the best way for him not to assume control.

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WATCH: Elon Musk still wants to influence change at Twitter, says Loup’s Gene Munster

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