Axcelis board rejects higher acquisition offer

Axcelis Technologies Inc. of Beverly said this morning that its board of directors unanimously rejected an unsolicited proposal from Sumitomo Heavy Industries Ltd. of Japan that valued Axcelis at $630 million, or $6 per share.

According to Axcelis, Sumitomo's latest offer "undervalues" Axcelis, which provides equipment to the semiconductor industry.

In Friday trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market, Axcelis shares closed at $5.59.

A month ago, it became public that Sumitomo had made a hostile bid that valued Axcelis at $544 million, or $5.20 a share, before sweetening the offer to its current level. Last week, Axcelis said its board was evaluating the new offer.

In statements today, Axcelis officials acknowledged that its share prices have been depressed and its financial performance adversely affected, partly because of its delay in bringing its Optima HD products to markets.

Still, Axcelis officials insisted that Sumitomo's latest offer continues to undervalue the company and that Axcelis is poised to regain high current implant market share.

About 25 years ago, Sumitomo, a conglomerate that sells everything from machine tools to mortgages, and Axcelis formed a joint venture called SEN Corp. to sell in Japan ion-implantation gear used in the making of computer chips.

When Sumitomo made its offer last month, a Sumitomo executive expressed concern about Axcelis's "inability to keep pace with its competitors."

That inability to keep pace, an analyst said then, was causing SEN to lose some Japanese customers.
(By Chris Reidy, Globe staff)