Spirit to Consider JetBlue Over Unsolicited $3.6 Billion Bid

Spirit Airlines said it would consider JetBlue's one-sided offer to buy the airline for $3.6 billion and start negotiations with its new suitors as well.

Spirit had already signed a$ 2.9 billion merger agreement with another low-cost carrier, Frontier Group Holdings when JetBlue clashed in a competitive bid. According to Spirit, the board has determined that JetBlue's proposal may be reasonable to bring about a good proposal. This will allow Spirit to begin discussions with JetBlue under the terms of the merger agreement.

JetBlue Chief Executive Robin Hayes said in a statement, “We are pleased the Spirit Board recognizes the compelling value for all stakeholders that JetBlue has offered.”

Spirit has said that the board is yet not determined which deal is better and has said that there is no assurance that the discussion with JetBlue will lead to a deal. The merger deal with Frontier is still in place and Spirit’s board continues to recommend it.

Analysts and industry watchers were amazed at JetBlue's approach, which came about two months after announcing the contract between Spirit and Frontier, which they have been working on since last year. JetBlue's share price has fallen 18.9% since Monday, the day before the offer was announced. Meanwhile, Spirit's share has risen by about 19.4% during the same time period.