What happened
Shares of social-fashion company Poshmark (POSH) jumped on Tuesday after management agreed to being acquired by Naver for $17.90 per share. As of 10:30 a.m. ET, Poshmark stock was up 13%.
So what
Naver is a Korean internet company that's buying Poshmark. Naver claims that its strengths are in areas like data analytics and search, which it believes will help Poshmark succeed in the same way it's thriving in Asia. Moreover, the deal helps Naver gain exposure in the important U.S. market.
Now what
In the official press release, it's implied that Naver is buying Poshmark for a generous premium. For context, Poshmark stock hovered around its low of about $10 per share as recently as three months ago. And the press release says Naver is paying a 48% premium to Poshmark's average price over the past 90 days.
While true, I'm sure longtime Poshmark shareholders are disappointed with this outcome. The company had its initial public offering (IPO) less than two years ago at $42 per share and immediately jumped to over $100 per share. However, the share price has steadily declined since the excitement of the IPO. And retail investors who purchased shares early will now lock in a greater than 80% loss.
There's little reason to believe Naver's buyout of Poshmark won't happen. And there's only 1.5% additional upside to reach the buyout price of $17.90 per share, as of this writing. Therefore, I believe it's safe to say that Poshmark stock jumped for the last time today. And shareholders are likely safe to sell and deploy that money in other investment opportunities.
