Out of the Gate: Chemtura sinks as sale talks end

Chemtura, which makes flame retardant materials and plastic additives, said it did not expect to get a strong enough buyout offer. The company has been investigating its options since December, and said it will continue mulling other possibilities including selling particular businesses, buying other companies or starting joint ventures.

The stock lost $1.95, or 23.8 percent, to $6.23 in early trading.

In late May, media reports had said private equity firms Blackstone Group and Apollo Management were each considering buying Chemtura. A Blackstone spokesman declined to comment Thursday on any discussions the firm may have had with Chemtura.

Oppenheimer analyst Edward Yang said the decision puts more pressure on the company to produce solid second-quarter results. He kept a "Perform" rating on the shares, meaning it is expected to perform in line with the S&P 500 over the next year, and said he expected the stock to be weak Thursday following the news.