Elon Musk, Twitter Quietly Held Talks To Lower $44B Buyout Price: WSJ

Tesla Inc TSLA CEO Elon Musk and Twitter Inc TWTR reportedly discussed a price cut to the original $44 billion buyout deal through their representatives, but the talks were unsuccessful.

What Happened: The discussions took the form of a series of confidential calls between the lawyers of Musk and Twitter in recent weeks and came to an end after the two parties failed to agree on terms, reported The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter.

After the unsuccessful talks, Musk revived his offer to purchase the Jack Dorsey-founded platform for $54.20 a share — the original price he proposed in April.

Representatives of Musk and Twitter were trying to resolve details of the April proposal as of late Wednesday, reported the Journal.

The talks centered on requirements for dropping the litigation related to the stalled deal and if the agreement’s closing depends on Musk obtaining the needed debt financing, as per the Journal.

Why It Matters: Twitter and Musk have agreed to delay the Tesla CEO’s deposition, which was scheduled to start Thursday in Texas, according to the report.

Meanwhile, Apollo Global Management Inc APO and Sixth Street Partners, who were in discussions to provide financing to Musk's buyout earlier this year, are no longer engaged in those discussions, Reuters reported, citing two sources familiar with the matter.

Twitter and Musk may move soon to end the legal case related to the buyout, according to a separate Reuters report on Wednesday.

Price Action: On Wednesday, Twitter and Tesla shares closed 1.3% and 3.5% lower, respectively, at $51.32 and $240.81 in the regular session, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

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