American Shared and USDL end talks

American Shared Hospital Services and U.S. Diagnostic succumbed to the inevitable last month, calling off talks regarding USDL's proposed acquisition of American Shared. American Shared cited USDL's inability to proceed with the negotiations in a timely fashion as the reason for the breakdown.

USDL of West Palm Beach, FL, and San Francisco-based American Shared first announced the proposed deal Dec. 11 (SCAN 12/18/96). USDL agreed to buy American Shared for $2.25 a share, payable in USDL stock, which was trading at around $12 a share when the deal was announced. USDL later increased the bid to $2.40 a share.

Two weeks later, however, revelations surfaced about the criminal record of USDL mergers and acquisitions consultant Keith Greenberg of Coyote Consulting. USDL's stock subsequently tanked, falling as low as $5.38. It has since rebounded, trading at around $8.75 last week. But that's still not high enough to make the deal attractive to USDL, according to CEO Joseph Paul.

American Shared will continue to entertain "expressions of interest" in the company, according to chairman and CEO Dr. Ernest Bates. The company will also pursue growth in its core business, as well as potential acquisitions, he said.

In addition to the USDL news, American Shared posted first-quarter financial results that indicated revenues of $9.1 million, up 2% compared with sales of $8.9 million in the first quarter of 1996. The company had net income of $39,000, compared with a net loss of $480,000.