Newport News Shipbuilding And Dry Dock Co

Northrop Grumman Corp., in an audacious move to undercut General Dynamics Corp.'s bid to become the nation's largest military shipbuilder, launched a rival unsolicited offer Tuesday to acquire Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. Sparking what is expected to be an intense fight with its old archrival, Century City-based Northrop made a formal $2.1-billion offer for the Newport News, Va., ship maker.

Northrop Grumman Corp. has reached a tentative agreement with the Justice Department to settle allegations that its Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. unit in Virginia overcharged the Pentagon $72 million for work on a commercial tanker program, people familiar with the deal said Friday. The agreement, coming days before the case was to go to trial in Alexandria, Va., would resolve another whistle-blower lawsuit against the Century City-based defense contractor.

The Navy announced that it has awarded a $416-million contract to Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Co. of Newport News, Va., to build one Los Angeles-class nuclear-powered attack submarine. Work will be performed in Newport News and is expected to be completed in May, 1995, according to the Naval Sea Systems Command, the contracting authority.

Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. charged the Navy $72 million for costs incurred on work for other customers from 1994 to 1999, the Justice Department contends in a lawsuit filed Monday. The government accuses Newport News of billing the Navy for costs related to the design and development of double-hulled tankers the company was building for commercial customers. Northrop became the biggest U.S. builder of warships last year after buying Newport News for $2.

Thousands of workers went on strike at Virginia's Newport News Shipbuilding. "We haven't heard a word" from shipyard management, Arnold Outlaw, president of Local 8888 of the United Steelworkers of America, said before workers struck. The union, which represents many of the yard's 9,200 hourly workers, had said it would strike over what it says are insufficient raises in a proposed new contract.

Litton Industries Inc. scrapped its $1.3-billion offer to buy Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. because of strong opposition from the Pentagon. But Litton said it is proceeding with plans to buy a smaller shipbuilder, Avondale Industries Inc., for about $525 million. The decision to abandon the Newport News purchase was not a surprise, because the Defense Department had made it clear in late May that it would move to block the merger.

* Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. posted fourth-quarter earnings of $24 million, or 74 cents a share, unchanged from a year ago, but the results beat analyst targets of 67 cents partly because of a ramp-up in activity on the Virginia-class submarine. Sales rose 7.4% to $578 million.

Northrop Grumman Corp. said it is changing the payments that Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. shareholders will receive from its $2.6-billion purchase of the sole maker of nuclear aircraft carriers. Newport News investors electing to receive cash will get $43.65 and 0.2542 of a Northrop share for each share they own, a Northrop spokesman said. The value of both payments is set at $67.50 a share. About 45% of shareholders elected to receive cash and stock, Northrop has said.

Northrop Grumman Corp. has not provided enough information about its $2.1-billion bid to buy Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. for the company's board to consider the proposal, Newport News' top executive said. The Newport News, Va.-based builder of nuclear submarines and aircraft carriers had already agreed to an offer from General Dynamics Corp.

General Dynamics Corp. said it has received a request from the Justice Department for more information about its $2.1-billion bid to acquire Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. The request comes amid a tug of war between General Dynamics and Northrop Grumman Corp., which has submitted a rival takeover bid for Newport News.

Northrop Grumman Corp. said it is changing the payments that Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. shareholders will receive from its $2.6-billion purchase of the sole maker of nuclear aircraft carriers. Newport News investors electing to receive cash will get $43.65 and 0.2542 of a Northrop share for each share they own, a Northrop spokesman said. The value of both payments is set at $67.50 a share. About 45% of shareholders elected to receive cash and stock, Northrop has said.

In a remarkable transformation for a company synonymous with aerospace, Northrop Grumman Corp. is set to become the world's largest military shipbuilder with the acquisition of Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. The $2.1-billion deal, approved by Newport News' board Thursday, would make Century City-based Northrop a maritime behemoth, supplying virtually every type of vessel required by the Navy, from destroyers and transport ships to nuclear submarines and massive aircraft carriers.

Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. said Tuesday it received a last-minute revised offer from Northrop Grumman Corp. that leaves the proposed purchase price at the original $2.1 billion but limits the conditions under which the offer could rise.

Northrop Grumman Corp.'s planned $2.6-billion purchase of Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. was cleared by the Justice Department, a week after rival defense contractor General Dynamics Corp. withdrew its bid. Antitrust regulators closed their investigation of the acquisition, allowing the transaction to move forward, Northrop said. The Justice Department sued to block General Dynamics' offer on Oct. 23 because the combination would eliminate competition for nuclear submarines.

The Pentagon endorsed Northrop Grumman Corp.'s bid to acquire Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. on Tuesday, dealing a stunning blow to a rival offer by General Dynamics Corp. In a separate move that all but assured Northrop would win the bid for the Virginia shipbuilder, the Justice Department said it filed an antitrust lawsuit Tuesday to block the deal between Newport News and General Dynamics.

Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. said Friday that it wants to begin merger talks with Northrop Grumman Corp., signaling the possibility of a bidding war between Northrop and its archrival General Dynamics Corp. The move comes as Pentagon officials hinted they may urge the Justice Department to let both bids move forward--leaving the choice to Newport News shareholders--rather than block either or both on antitrust or national security grounds.

A Pentagon review of General Dynamics Corp.'s $2-billion unsolicited bid for rival Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. may be made public sometime this week, sources have told the Washington Post. The Defense Department is still analyzing whether to recommend that Defense Secretary William S. Cohen approve the bid, Defense spokesman Glenn Flood said. The merger offer must be approved by the departments of Defense and Justice, as well as Newport News' board and shareholders.

Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. said its board will meet today to look again at rival merger bids from General Dynamics Corp. and Northrop Grumman Corp. in light of the recent jump in Northrop's share price. The announcement followed indications the Pentagon would urge the Justice Department to let both bids move forward--leaving the choice to Newport News shareholders--rather than blocking either or both on antitrust or national security grounds. The board, which has backed General Dynamics' $2.

The senior U.S. senator from Mississippi questioned the cost savings predicted by General Dynamics Corp. in its $2.1-billion cash offer for warship builder Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. in a letter to U.S. Defense Department officials made public Tuesday. Sen.