BILTHOVEN, The Netherlands (AP) -- ASM International NV, which makes semiconductor equipment and materials, said Friday that Applied Materials Inc. and Francisco Partners will no longer pursue an offer to buy the Dutch company's front-end operations.
U.S.-listed shares of ASM plunged on the news, losing $2.24, or 22.2 percent, to $7.86 in morning trading. Earlier, the stock hit a new low of $7.88, a level not seen since 2002.
Bilthoven, the Netherlands-based ASM announced in June that it received a combined unsolicited bid from the companies that was valued at up to $800 million.
On Friday, ASM said it received information from Applied Materials and Francisco Partners that they will no longer pursue the offer.
ASM's front-end segment includes production technology for wafer processing.
