WSJ : Xerox Rejects Proposed Merger Deal With R.R. Donnelley

(RTTNews) - Xerox Corp. (XRX) privately rejected a bid to merge its document business with R.R. Donnelley & Sons Co. (RRD), the Wall Street Journal reported citing people familiar with the matter.

Xerox in January announced plans to break into two businesses, splitting its business-outsourcing operations from its legacy printer and copier division.

R.R. Donnelley, which is also in the process of breaking up, expressed interest in putting its operations together with Xerox's remaining copier business, the report said.

The proposal called for a deal that would have been structured as a so-called Morris Trust, a tax-efficient set-up in which Xerox would get a slight premium. The R.R. Donnelley proposal called for its executives to take control, and for several hundred million dollars in new cost cuts, the report said.

The Xerox board reportedly reviewed the proposal with its advisers before telling R.R. Donnelley Thursday it wasn't interested—believing its own plan is less risky.