Affymetrix's Stock Drops After Company Recommends Against Origin's Higher Buyout Bid

Affymetrix Inc.'s stock slumped 5.2% in active afternoon trade Monday, after the biotechnology company said it determined that the buyout bid it received last week from Origin Technologies Corp. was not superior to the deal it made with Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. . The company said continues to recommend the shareholders vote for the proposed merger with Thermo Fisher. The stock had surged 5.2% on March 23, after Affymetrix said Origin's bid would likely be seen as a superior proposal. "While the Board found the $3.00 per share premium offered in the Origin Proposal, taken by itself, to be attractive, after engaging with Origin, the Board found the risks to initiating and consummating a potential transaction with Origin outweighed the potential benefit of a higher offer from Origin," Affymetrix said in a statement. The stock was still up 40% year to date, while the S&P 500 had lost 0.2%.