Fitbit Denies Takeover Bid Has Been Received

Fitbit said late Thursday that it has not in fact received an official takeover bid, following reports earlier in the day from various news outlets that it had in fact been targeted for a takeout by a firm called ABM Capital.

As reported by the Wall Street Journal and other news sources, the fitness tracker company said in a statement that it has “not received any communication from ABM,” which would contrast with that latter firm’s own filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that ABM, based in China, had made “preliminary communications … before the commencement of a potential tender offer.”

Fitbit also clarified that it had not had any communications from any other firm in regards to a takeover. The WSJ reported that the ABM Capital phone number “did not appear” to be working and there was no one available from the firm for comment. The SEC filing stated that ABM stood interested in buying up Fitbit Class A shares, with attendant voting rights, for $12.50 a share, compared to the $8.41 a share the common was fetching before they were halted Thursday. Several news outlets called the ABM SEC filing “suspicious,” with the WSJ noting that several other companies, including Avon and Kraft Heinz, have been targeted by “apparently fake securities filings” in the past.