Background
Versum Materials (VSM) is a top supplier of gases, chemicals, equipment, and materials for the semiconductor industry. The company was spun-off from Air Products (APD) back in 2016. I initially purchased shares following the company's listing on the stock exchange and subsequently sold out after the share price appreciated significantly. Now that Versum is being bought out by Merck (OTCPK:MKKGY) and an attractive arbitrage spread exists, I am considering repurchasing shares.
It is interesting to see how Versum's under-performance relative to the S&P 500 created the opportunity for