Broadcom shares, which were down 2.8% in regular trading Wednesday, fell another 5.2% after hours after The Wall Street Journal reported on the impending deal, and some analysts questioned its logic.
That panel, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., or CFIUS, said it was worried that Broadcom would stymie research and development at Qualcomm given its reputation as a cost-cutting behemoth.
Broadcom, which launched its hostile bid for Qualcomm in November in what would have been the technology industrys biggest-ever deal, was working to relocate to the U.S.
Broadcom Chief Executive Hock Tan, who took over at the company in 2006, has earned a reputation as one of the most aggressive and successful acquirers in the technology industry, even though he stumbled in his pursuit of Qualcomm. While many technology companies seek to disrupt or dominate markets by developing new products, Mr. Tan has purchased established players with leading products and defensible advantages, and shed operations he picks up that dont fit these criteria.
Broadcom makes chips for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS connectivity in smartphones, as well as components for wired networks and data storage.
The company develops software to support its chips, supplying layers of code that help engineers write programs for its products.
CA Technologies, on the other hand, sells tools for mainframe computers, the source of most of its revenue, and for planning, developing and managing programming projects.
Mr. Tan in Broadcoms most recent earnings conference call said he was still on the lookout for acquisition targets despite the buybacks.
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