Avnet To Buy Bell Microproducts For $7/Shr; Raises Guidance

The giant electronics distributor Avnet (AVT) this morning said it will acquire� Bell Microproducts (BELM) for $7 a share in cash, or about $594 million including the assumption of $342 million in debt. The deal is subject to approval of� Bell’s holders, and is expected to close in 60-120 days.

Bell, which has about $3 billion in sales in 2009, is distributor of storage products and other IT hardware; it has over 1,900 employees.

Avnet said it now expects March quarter revenue from its Electronics Marketing Group of $2.75 billion to $2.85 billion, narrowing the old range of $2.55 billion to $2.85 billion. The company sees revenue from its Technology Solutions Group of $1.7 billion to $1.85 billion, again narrowing the forecast from the original range of $1.55 billion to $1.85 billion. Overall revenue is expected to be $4.45 billion to $.7 billion, with EPS of 60-66 cents, which is up from previous guidance of 53-61 cents.

In this morning’s trading:

• BELM this morning is up $1.54, or 28.6%, to $6.92.
• AVT is up down 9 cents, or 0.3%, to $28.37.