FreeRealTime.com Plans Merger With Oregon Research Company

FreeRealTime.com Inc., an Irvine provider of real-time stock market data online, said Wednesday that it will issue 4 million shares of stock to merge with privately held RedChip.com Inc., an independent research company in Portland, Ore.

FreeRealTime.com shares gained $1 to close at $5 a share, making the deal worth $20 million.

The companies said in a joint press release that RedChip.com shareholders will own, on a pro forma basis, about one-third of the combined company.

Operations will be based in Irvine, with offices in Portland, San Francisco, Minneapolis and New York.