Analyst: Rockstar To Stay Despite EA's Hostile Bid

As analysts continue to size up EA's hostile bid for Take-Two, Cowen's Doug Creutz has said he expects the majority of shareholders will accept the deal, and that the hostile move won't affect EA's ability to retain top Rockstar talent. Creutz says in his latest notes to investors that "it appears unlikely that there will be any meaningful obstacle to the acceptance of EA's tender offer." "If 90% of Take-Two shareholders tender, we think EA could close the deal as early as mid-April via a short-form merger," he says. "Otherwise, the deal could take somewhat longer to close, but we do expect a majority of TTWO shareholders to accept EA's offer." More importantly to investors, Creutz believes that "although the offer is now technically hostile, we don't believe this is likely to impact EA's ability to convince Rockstar's employees to stay, since EA has made it clear that a significant part of the deal's value is driven by the development talent at Take-Two." "EA can point to how they have handled the integration of Bioware and Pandemic," he concludes, "to allay fears about the potential impact of the acquisition on creative freedom and culture."