It is almost out of the question for a hostile takeover bid for Management Science America Inc to succeed because insiders hold about a quarter of the stock of the Atlanta company and the key human assets have said that they will up sticks if a hostile bidder looks like succeeding – but as well as IBM with its friendly 5% stake, there is, the Wall Street Journal points out, another investor sitting on MSA’s share register – General Atlantic Partners of New York, a front for duty free cigarettes king Charles Feeney, which has 9.8% and is given to sitting around for the long term waiting for something to happen.
