Silicon Labs to sell infrastructure and auto unit to Skyworks for $27.5 billion

Corrects headline to say $2.75 billion, not $27.5 billion

April 22 (Reuters) - Silicon Laboratories Inc SLAB.O said on Thursday it would sell its infrastructure and automotive business to Skyworks Solutions Inc SWKS.O for $2.75 billion, in a move that would let the chipmaker focus on its core business.

Shares of Silicon Labs were halted in after hours trading, while Skyworks shares were up 3.8% at $190.47.

Austin, Texas-based Silicon Labs has been in recent months focused on the internet-of-things market, selling wireless chips for smart home devices.

The deal includes Silicon Labs' power and isolation, timing and broadcast products, intellectual property and associated employees, the company said in a statement.

Silicon Labs expects to receive $2.3 billion in net proceeds from the deal and will return about $2 billion to shareholders through a combination of special dividends and buybacks.

The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of 2021, the company said.

(Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain and Stephen Nellis; Editing by Ramakrishnan M.)

((Stephen.Nellis@thomsonreuters.com; (415) 344-4934;))

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