Reuters reported that the negotiations between Arris and CommScope were ongoing and that there was no certainty that a deal would be completed.
On Wednesday, Arris' stock was briefly put on hold when it jumped 1.85% after previously dropping to a 52-week low the same day. According to Reuters, Arris' stock closed up 6.7% at $24.06 on Wednesday, giving the company a market value of $4.3 billion. CommScope shares closed down 4.6% at $24.43, giving it a market value of $4.7 billion.
At SCTE Cable-Tec Expo in Atlanta, an Arris employee declined to comment on the trading halt ahead of the news of CommScope's intent.
Arris makes modems and set-top boxes for service providers as well as cable modem termination systems for cable operators, among many other product offerings.
Arris' E600 edge router has been widely deployed globally and is one of the leading devices for cable's Converged Cable Access Platform (CCAP.) In an interview yesterday with FierceTelecom on the show floor of SCTE Cable-Tec Expo, Arris Engineering Fellow Chris Busch said the eE600 router was also enabling virtualization for cable operators via its software.
Arris has been active on the M&A front. Two years ago, Arris bought set-top box rival Pace for $2.1 billion and incorporated itself in Britain in a deal structured as a corporate tax inversion, according to Reuters.
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On the wireless front, Arris bought Brocade’s Ruckus Wireless assets for $800 million to go with its existing Wi-Fi technologies.
Arris' portfolio would add both depth and reach for U.S. telecommunications equipment vendor CommScope. CommScope, which is based in based in Hickory, North Carolina, offers connectivity and infrastructure for the wireless industry and cable operators.
CommScope’s shares dropped in May after it lowered its full-year profit forecast, citing price reductions at certain large North American operators, as well as higher input costs, according to Reuters.
CommScope was taken public in 2013 by private equity firm Carlyle Group, which has a long list of telecommunications-based investments and ownerships.