Datum Buyout Bid Provokes ‘Poison Pill’

Datum Inc. said Wednesday it hired an investment banking firm to evaluate an unsolicited buyout bid from a New York company but put a “poison pill” in place to discourage a hostile takeover.

The moves came a day after Frequency Electronics Inc., a manufacturer of electronic devices, offered to acquire Irvine-based Datum for $58 million, or $10 a share, 29% more than the stock’s price of $7.75 before the bid.

Datum’s stock rose $1.25, or 16%, to $9 a share on Wednesday. A total of 218,100 shares changed hands on Nasdaq, more than five times the recent daily average.

Datum, which makes sophisticated timing devices to synchronize the flow of information in telecommunications networks, hired Hambrecht & Quist as its financial advisor to help evaluate Frequency’s offer to pay cash, stock or a combination of both.

On Friday, the company will announce whether it is accepting or rejecting the offer or deferring a decision, said Erik H. van der Kaay, president and chief executive.