The stock was above $9 when the deal was announced. In such financings, brokers offer a discount to the market price to ensure a successful deal. The 75-cent guess was an approximation based on market price at the time and the deal price. Sometimes stocks will fall below the deal price, sometimes not, and sometimes they can even rise higher than the former market price. But typically, large holders sell into the market, and then replace their shares with deal shares. This can lock in a profit (e.g. sell at $9.05, buy shares at $8.50 on the deal) for these invesors. It is not an exact science. Sometimes acquisitions are met with more selling, sometimes with more buying. The shares sold are in conjuction with the acquisition and only become shares (they are subscription receipts right now) once the acquisition actually closes.
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