Elon Musk on Wednesday revealed in a filing that he plans to raise the money he is fronting in his bid to acquire Twitter up to $33.5 billion. TWTR stock jumped during after-hours trading.
Musk previously indicated he would front $27.25 billion to buy the social media outlet as part of a $44 billion deal that has ignited drama on Wall Street. The Tesla chief executive no longer plans to rely on a margin loan backed by shares in the electric-car maker, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.
Twitter stock was up 6% after hours near 39.40 on the stock market today. Shares ended the regular session Wednesday up 3.9% to 37.16.
The filing also notes that Musk will continue to have discussions with certain holders of common stock about the possibility of contributing those shares in order to retain an equity investment. This includes Twitter founder and former Chief Executive Jack Dorsey. The Journal reported that Musk had lined up 19 investors contributing $7.14 billion as of early May.
The announcement of Musk's increased investment follows a Twitter meeting of stockholders early Wednesday. The company has planned a special meeting for shareholders to vote on the acquisition, though the date has yet to be confirmed, according to a report from Barron's.
Last week, the board of directors unanimously recommended that shareholders accept Musk's offer of $54.20 a share for TWTR stock, though the ultimate outcome remains unclear.
Trying To Lower The Bid For TWTR Stock
Musk recently had suggested in a tweet he might seek to lower the price of the deal. But Twitter executives have said they won't renegotiate the agreed-upon price.
Musk recently tweeted the deal was on a "temporary hold" so that he can investigate the quantity of fake accounts, bots and spammers on the site.
Twitter has said less than 5% of subscribers fit into that category. But it also said the percentage could be higher.
Musk has estimated the figure could be as high as 20%. But he has not presented any evidence for that claim to be reviewed. Many analysts have said getting an accurate count is difficult to unlikely.
Musk's Back Against The Wall
Musk has his back against the wall in other ways. He signed off on the negotiated due diligence. As such, it means Musk may have already agreed to Twitter's position on the count.
Moreover, last week, Twitter executives told employees the deal to sell the company to the billionaire is moving forward as planned, and that they won't renegotiate the price.
Twitter filed its proxy statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission last week, which outlined the transaction's history and terms of the negotiations.
On April 1, Musk revealed he had purchased a 9.1% stake in Twitter. He then announced a plan to acquire all outstanding shares of Twitter that he didn't own. He made the offer on April 14 and the Twitter board agreed to it on April 25.
Please follow Brian Deagon on Twitter at @IBD_BDeagon for more on tech stocks, analysis and financial markets.
